How many NC high school athletes are getting paid? New report out on NIL deals
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
More North Carolina high school athletes are financially benefiting from their name, image and likeness, but a new report shows they’re not getting huge sums of money.
Read more Lake Norman officer charged with improper use of Flock to search for vehicle
A report presented Wednesday to the State Board of Education shows 21 North Carolina high school students signed NIL agreements during the 2025-26 school year — a 75% increase from the prior year. But the biggest agreement in the new report was for $25,000, compared to the $1.2 million deal signed in the 2024-25 school year.
Brad Alford, director for the state Department of Public Instruction’s Office of Athletics, said the typical NIL deal was for between $200 and $700. Deals ranged from complimentary sports drinks to a $25,000 company representation agreement.
Alford will leave DPI to become the new commissioner of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association.
North Carolina public high school students hadn’t been allowed to sign NIL deals until 2024. That changed when Faizon Brandon, then the star quarterback of Grimsley High School in Greensboro, successfully challenged the prohibition in court.
Brandon went on to sign several highly publicized marketing deals. He is currently a freshman on the University of Tennessee’s football team.
Read more Why Coby White thinks Hornets ‘can surprise a lot of people’ in 2026-27
In the 2024-25 school year, 11 schools in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association reported 17 NIL agreements for 12 student-athletes. The reports don’t name the players getting the deals, but it’s widely believed that Brandon got the seven-figure deal reported that school year.
The figures rose in the 2025-26 school year to 18 NCHSAA member schools reporting 24 NIL agreements for 21 student-athletes.
No NIL violations were reported.
The Carolina Athletic Association for Schools of Choice didn’t report any NIL agreements or violations.
This story was originally published August 5, 2026 at 1:40 PM with the headline “How many NC high school athletes are getting paid? New report out on NIL deals.”
Read more ‘Multiple’ deaths reported at scene of ‘mass shooting’ in NC, SBI says
