Browse
Business the NHL Way: Lessons From the Fastest Game on Ice
Farah J. Ishaq
Charting a New Path: Regulating College Athlete Name, Image and Likeness After NCAA v. Alston Through Collective Bargaining
Alicia Jessop, Thomas A. Baker III, Joanna Wall Tweedie, and John T. Holden
This study examines the remaining options for sport managers to balance the interests of college athletes and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in regulating college athlete name, image, and likeness (NIL). The paper is divided into six substantive sections. The first section, “Background: The NCAA’s Defense of NIL Restrictions,” provides a brief history of the NCAA’s legal defense to challenges against its NIL regulations. The second section, “U.S. Congress Is Unlikely to Regulate College Athletes’ NIL Rights,” addresses proposed federal legislation and Congress’ willingness to regulate the use of NIL by college athletes. The third section, “The Impact of O’Bannon and Alston on NCAA’s NIL Restraints,” examines controlling case law, specifically O’Bannon v. NCAA and NCAA v. Alston, and how current antitrust law precedent shapes the scope by which the NCAA can regulate college athletes’ NIL. The fourth section, “State Laws Regulating the NIL Marketplace,” addresses state legislation regulating college athlete NIL use. The fifth section, “The Applicability of Labor Law to Regulating College Athletes’ NIL,” discusses the current college athlete NIL marketplace and analyzes whether labor law presents an optimal way forward for the NCAA to regulate NIL post-Alston. The sixth section, “College Athletes’ Employee Status as a Pathway to Redefine the NCAA’s Amateurism,” concludes by examining the law’s role in regulating NIL and discussing stakeholder implications.
The New Wave of Influencers: Examining College Athlete Identities and the Role of Homophily and Parasocial Relationships in Leveraging Name, Image, and Likeness
Yiran Su, Xuan Guo, Christine Wegner, and Thomas Baker
This article brings together scholarship on communication theory, influencer marketing, and personal branding to examine a new type of social media influencer—the college athlete influencer. Previous research in the field of sports has not specifically explored the distinct characteristics of college athletes that contribute to their effectiveness as marketing influencers. By adopting a sequential explanatory mixed-methods approach, this study provides a comprehensive understanding of the source of college athletes’ influence via social media. Quantitative results indicate that projecting an athletic identity on social media enhances the influencer’s credibility and increases the likelihood of consumers purchasing the products they endorse. Furthermore, qualitative findings indicated that the shared school identity acts as the ultimate impetus for the bond between the influencer and the consumer, which subsequently impacts the consumer’s purchasing decisions. This study provides actionable implications for schools, colleges, and brands seeking to build compelling sponsorships in the name, image, and likeness era.
Special Issue Introduction: Name, Image, and Likeness and the National Collegiate Athletic Association
Steven Salaga, Natasha Brison, Joseph Cooper, Daniel Rascher, and Andy Schwarz
Exercising Power: A Critical Examination of National Collegiate Athletic Association Discourse Related to Name, Image, and Likeness
Jonathan E. Howe, Wayne L. Black, and Willis A. Jones
Although name, image, and likeness policy officially changed on July 1, 2021, actions leading up to this policy modification provide insight into the desires and perspectives of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Feeling pressure from individual states and federal legislators, the NCAA engaged in discussion regarding name, image, and likeness in Fall of 2019. In response to newly introduced name, image, and likeness policy changes, the NCAA listed their official statements on the Taking Actions: Name, Image and Likeness webpage. These statements (n = 10) were analyzed using critical discourse analysis methodology underpinned with a Foucaultian perspective. Using critical discourse analysis, we extrapolated three overarching themes related to power dynamics: (a) Establishing Control While Undercutting Oppositional Power, (b) Power Shifts Away from NCAA, and (c) Power Reinforcement. We conclude by discussing the importance of examining discourse within organizations and implications for policy and practice.
“Like Ships in the Night” and the Paradox of Distinctiveness for Sport Management: A Citation Network Analysis of Institutional Theory in Sport
Mathew Dowling, Jonathan Robertson, Marvin Washington, Becca Leopkey, Dana Lee Ellis, Andie Riches, and Lee Smith
A central issue within sport management is the extent to which the field should develop a distinctive theoretical knowledge base. This paper empirically investigates the connectedness within (intrafield) and between (interfield) management and sport management disciplines in one specific knowledge domain—institutional theory. We utilized a database of 188 sport-related institutional studies and conducted a citation network analysis of the aggregated reference lists from these articles. We argue that the fields of management and sport management act like “ships in the night.” That is, as the field of sport management has become more distinctive, the field is becoming less connected with general management literature and contemporary theoretical discussions. Potential implications for sport management scholarship and understanding the nature of the field are discussed, along with how it may be possible (if desired) to bridge the gap between sport and management research.
The Influence of Personal Branding and Institutional Factors on the Name, Image, and Likeness Value of Collegiate Athletes’ Social Media Posts
Adam R. Cocco, Thilo Kunkel, and Bradley J. Baker
Most collegiate athletes in the United States monetize their name, image, and likeness (NIL) through social media influencer marketing. This provides an opportunity to examine the factors that impact their social media NIL value. Therefore, we investigate the effects of personal branding factors (quality of Instagram biography, posting frequency, and account verification status) and institutional factors (competition level, university brand, and sport gender) on the social media NIL value of men’s and women’s college basketball athletes (N = 907) in California while controlling for local market characteristics. A linear regression analysis shows significant relationships between social media NIL value and competition level, university brand, sport gender, posting frequency, and account verification. Our results offer new theoretical and practical understandings of the relationships between brands in the sport brand ecosystem and the NIL value of sport influencer’s social media posts.
Volume 37 (2023): Issue 4 (Jul 2023)
The Antecedents of Shared Leadership in Sport for Development and Peace Collaboratives
Seungmin Kang and Per G. Svensson
While recent scholarship emphasizes the potential role of shared leadership as a viable alternative to help address existing challenges in the Sport for Development and Peace sector, limited attention has been given to understanding how and when shared leadership can be developed. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore antecedents of shared leadership based on practitioners’ lived experiences within multiorganizational collaboratives. A total of 30 practitioners involved in two multiorganizational Sport for Development and Peace collaboratives was interviewed. Data were analyzed through a two-cycle coding process. Four themes were identified, including (a) strategic planning, (b) support from vertical leaders, (c) shared events, and (d) personal characteristics of members as critical antecedents of shared leadership. The findings of this study provide a foundation for refining shared leadership theory. Additionally, the findings also allow for the identification of field-sensitive strategies practitioners can implement to develop environments more conducive to shared leadership development.