NIL, THE DAYTON WAY
A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO SUCCESS
Your support to the Dayton Flyers creates a meaningful impact on our team’s success!
Effective July 1, 2025 the University of Dayton holds the primary contractual relationship with its student-athletes. The settlement (House v NCAA) allows institutions to pay student athletes directly up to a capped amount (currently around $21 million per school, per year for all sports).
Prior to July 1, 2025 no school could make any direct payments, which is why Dayton 6th was formed.
This cap will be re calculated every third year, and it includes a 4.0% automatic annual escalator. The cap is tied to a formula based on average Power 5 school revenue, meaning that football revenues at major programs significantly influence the cap.
The cap is projected to surpass $30M+ within three years.
The goal of the settlement is to reduce fraudulent or off book payments from boosters and fans that circumvent the system. However, there is ongoing skepticism about how effectively those restrictions will be interpreted and enforced.
COMPETING WITH PURPOSE.
With the right culture around it, NIL can improve the University, our communities, and the long-term relationships our student-athletes have across the Dayton region.
NIL, The Dayton Way is as much about creating formative engagements and inspiring stories as it is staying competitive.
Q: Should my financial contribution toward player compensation (aka “NIL”) be given to the University or Dayton 6th?
Answer:
In most cases, it will make the most sense to contribute directly to the University of Dayton Men’s or Women’s Basketball programs via standard institution donations. The University of Dayton is a qualified 501(c)(3) organization.
You can donate directly and claim a tax deduction for the contribution if you itemize deductions.
Since the University of Dayton now holds the primary contractual relationship with student athletes, the University requires the necessary resources to fulfill those obligations.
What role will
play moving forward?
Dayton 6th will continue to serve in the role of a sports marketing agency for individuals or businesses that are unable to work directly with the University but still want to partner with players for endorsements, appearances, and promotions.
Dayton 6th will continue to engage in NIL agreements with student athletes, specifically, to promote goods and services to the general public at fair market value that for one reason or another, cannot work through the University.
Common questions regarding compensation to student-athletes, NIL, and the role of Dayton 6th.
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Effective July 1, the University of Dayton now holds the primary contractual relationship with its student-athletes. The settlement allows institutions to directly pay student-athletes up to a capped amount, currently around $21 million per school per year across all sports. Previous to July 1, no school could make any direct payments, which is why Dayton 6th was formed.
This cap will be re-evaluated every few years
It includes a 4 percent automatic annual escalator
The cap is tied to a formula based on average Power 5 school revenue, meaning that football revenues at major programs significantly influence the cap
The goal of the settlement is to reduce fraudulent or off book payments from boosters and fans that circumvent the system. However, there is ongoing skepticism about how effectively those restrictions will be interpreted and enforced.
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In most cases, yes — you should contribute directly to UD Men’s or Women’s Basketball.
Since UD now holds the primary contractual relationship with student-athletes, the University requires the necessary resources to fulfill those obligations.
Dayton 6th will continue to engage in NIL agreements with student-athletes, but only for a valid business purpose — specifically, to promote goods and services to the general public at fair market value.
Dayton 6th can also act as a marketing agency for individuals or businesses that are unable to work directly with the University but still want to partner with players for endorsements, appearances, and promotions.
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Certainly. If you’ve contributed to Dayton 6th as an individual, it is very likely in your best interest to donate that money directly to the University. Such contributions are tax deductible and benefit the athletic program in the same way any other philanthropic gift to UD would.
However, if you engage with Dayton 6th as a business or organization, the answer depends on your relationship with UD:
Official corporate partners of the University should generally work directly with UD
If you are not an official partner but want access to player endorsements or promotional work, Dayton 6th can serve as your marketing agency
For example
An accounting firm whose corporate headquarters wanted to hire players for endorsements couldn’t become an official UD corporate partner. Instead, they worked with Dayton 6th to secure players for promotions and appearances through compliant and fair market agreements. -
Dayton 6th will serve as a sports marketing agency for the Flyer Faithful — helping individuals and businesses legally and efficiently engage with student-athletes under Name Image and Likeness (NIL) guidelines.
We’ll focus on promoting goods and services provided to the general public, with compensation to student-athletes that is compliant with fair market value standards.
NIL has created a new era for College Athletics.
Since the day student-athletes were able to earn legitimate compensation for the use of their name, image, and likeness (“NIL”), Dayton 6th was working alongside men’s and women’s basketball players at the University of Dayton. We’ve put a process in place, launched a platform, and are continually evolving the support system in a way that sets the University of Dayton, the region, and our student-athletes up for success.
The map to navigate the ever-changing landscape is still being drawn, with boundless opportunity for growth. The University and Dayton 6th will continue to lead this in a way the Flyer Faithful can be proud of. The right way. THE DAYTON WAY.
