There is a new, officially licensed collective for BYU athletics designed to attract top talent and get the most out of name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities for the school and its student-athletes.
It’s called The Royal Blue collective, the school announced Thursday.
What will The Royal Blue collective do for BYU athletics?
The Royal Blue, which will be overseen by a board that runs independent of BYU athletics and has “engaged” Oncoor Marketing to run the day-to-day operations of the collective, has signed a corporate sponsorship agreement with BYU.
The collective’s objectives were outlined in a press release from the school, chief among them:
- The Royal Blue has a two-fold mission “to deliver a premier name, image and likeness (NIL) solution that enables BYU to attract and develop gifted athletes who perform at high levels in sports and become well-equipped to thrive in family, faith and life’s pursuits.”
- The collective intends to pool funds from a combination of fans, alumni and businesses to help facilitate NIL deals and build the brands of student-athletes.
- While the collective’s initial focus will be on student-athletes in the BYU football and men’s and women’s basketball programs, The Royal Blue hopes to work with student-athletes in all Cougar sports.
“The collective is committed to supporting BYU in being a consistent national leader in collegiate athletic performance and seeing all its student-athletes promote light and goodness in life beyond sports,” co-chairman Lon Henderson said in a statement.
“We believe a BYU education for student-athletes should provide a whole life experience that exceeds that of any other educational institution.”
How will The Royal Blue collective help BYU as it heads into the Big 12?
BYU will join the Big 12 Conference next summer, marking a new era of athletics at the school.
“We are excited to work with The Royal Blue as a corporate sponsor of BYU Athletics and for the opportunities they’ll bring to our student-athletes,” BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe said in a statement. “We are certain they understand BYU’s unique mission and commitment to promote the incredible student-athletes at BYU. We believe working with the collective is the right move. As we look to our future, competing in the Big 12, this is an important signal to Cougar Nation and future recruits that we are invested in providing beneficial and substantive opportunities for our student-athletes.”