- The Florida High School Athletic Association passed a NIL bill that would allow high school student-athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness.
- The decision is set to go into effect before the start of Florida's 2024-25 high school season.
- Tuesday's ruling makes Florida the 36th state to allow student-athletes to profit from the use of their name, image and likeness.
Welcome to the NIL era of Florida high school sports.
The Florida High School Athletic Association unanimously passed a NIL bill that would allow high school athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness.
Big changes will come to Florida high school sports before the start of the 2024-25 season.
more:Will Florida's NIL make it harder for public schools to compete with private schools?
NIL for Florida High Schools: What is it and what does it mean?
NIL, an acronym that stands for “Name, Image and Likeness,” is a legal concept that allows college, and now high school, athletes to profit from their personal brands.
Athletes can benefit by promoting the product through brand advertising on social media and appearing in television commercials.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association previously prohibited college athletes from taking this financial approach, but that changed following a 2021 Supreme Court ruling.
In the years that followed, each state sought its own path on whether to allow or restrict financial gain for student-athletes, with a trickle-down effect that extended to high school sports a few years later.
As of October 2023, 30 states and the District of Columbia allow high school athletes to benefit from NIL contracts. Tuesday's ruling means Florida joins 35 other states that have decided to allow such benefits to be obtained.
It is set to go into effect before the start of Florida's 2024-25 high school season, meaning the impact of the ruling could be felt within months.
What was the first state to allow NIL in high school?
California is believed to be the first state to allow NIL contracts at the high school level, but it came with trade-offs.
Receiving money in high school would make a student-athlete ineligible to play in college, but that rule changed when the National Collegiate Athletic Association approved college athletes being able to profit from their NIL in 2021 following the Supreme Court decision in NCAA v. Alston.
Since then, states have followed suit, making a dramatic move to allow NIL trading at the high school level.
Indeed, Tuesday's ruling makes Florida the 36th state to allow student-athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness.
Can high school students receive NIL money?
Tuesday's ruling means student-athletes can officially earn money from promoting products using their name, image and likeness, but it doesn't come without conditions.
Student-athletes cannot use their school's name, logo or uniform without the district's consent, and NIL contracts must be negotiated by the athlete and his or her parents or guardians without the school's involvement.
Promotion of goods or services such as guns, drugs, alcohol or gambling is prohibited.
Additionally, schools and sponsoring organizations cannot lure student-athletes to their programs with the promise of a NIL contract, and high school student-athletes who transfer during the season cannot sign a NIL contract for that year unless they receive a good cause waiver from their school district.
Alex Peterman is a high school sports reporter for the Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at apeterman@gannett.com.
