Giving Student-Athletes Control of Their NIL Future.
Athlete Ventures is a pioneering platform built to help student-athletes succeed in the era of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). Designed to empower athletes with the tools, resources, and transparency they need, Athlete Ventures helps bridge the gap between collegiate sports and modern brand partnerships. By combining education, deal management, and compliance, the platform gives athletes and organizations alike the confidence to participate in NIL opportunities safely and effectively.
The Challenge
The NCAA’s rule change on NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) rights created an entirely new industry overnight. While it opened doors for student-athletes to monetize their personal brands, it also exposed them to confusing contracts, murky compliance requirements, and predatory offers.
Athlete Ventures recognized that most athletes lacked the legal knowledge, financial guidance, or technical tools to evaluate deals properly. Universities and organizations were also struggling to provide consistent oversight. Without a trusted platform, athletes risked losing out on opportunities or signing agreements that could harm their eligibility and long-term prospects.
Our Approach
We collaborated with Athlete Ventures to transform their vision into a platform that athletes could trust, universities could rely on, and brands could confidently engage with. We began by grounding the product in research—mapping user journeys, defining compliance requirements, and identifying the pathways athletes and administrators would take throughout the platform. Our process combined strategy, discovery, and technical validation to ensure the final product balanced a seamless user experience with the regulatory rigor required in the NIL landscape. By merging research-driven design with secure, scalable development practices, we built a foundation that was both intuitive and compliant.
Once the strategic groundwork was in place, we moved into design execution, progressing from user journeys to high-fidelity mockups while maintaining close collaboration with the Athlete Ventures team. Together, we defined and prioritized MVP features to ensure the product delivered meaningful value from day one. The core emphasis centered on building a marketplace capable of facilitating negotiating, tracking, and signing NIL contracts—while secondary features like reporting were intentionally placed on the roadmap. Our business model targeted university partnerships, ensuring student-athlete compliance and streamlining onboarding. This approach allowed us to bypass the typical supply-and-demand hurdles of marketplace startups, creating a more predictable and scalable acquisition path.
Brands remained a critical piece of the ecosystem, so we designed tools specifically for their decision-making needs. We developed easy-to-share media kits that provided a holistic view of each athlete—not just follower counts, but also performance history, social momentum, and growth trends. These insights empowered brands to make informed, long-term investments in student athletes. To support safe and compliant collaboration, we built deal-posting and negotiation tools that kept communication structured and traceable. Together, these features created a trusted environment for athletes, universities, and brands, while laying the groundwork for future enhancements such as advanced reporting and marketplace analytics.
- Conducted deep market research into NIL regulations, compliance requirements, and contract workflows
- Interviewed student-athletes to understand their challenges, expectations, and pain points
- Created information architecture and user flows for contract review, offer tracking, and compliance monitoring
- Designed a modern UI/UX system tailored for Gen Z athletes—mobile-first, intuitive, and visually clear
- Delivered custom web app development with secure data handling, role-based access, and built-in audit trails
- Ran iterative usability testing to validate trust, clarity, and adoption with real users
The Impact
Athlete Ventures launched as one of the first digital platforms focused exclusively on NIL, establishing itself as a trusted partner to both athletes and organizations.
The platform empowered student-athletes to take control of their brand while giving schools and sponsors confidence in compliance. Early adopters praised its usability, security, and the confidence it instilled in navigating NIL opportunities.
With Goji Labs’ support, Athlete Ventures created more than just a platform—it created a path for athletes to thrive in a new and often overwhelming digital economy.
- Provided a secure marketplace for NIL deals with streamlined contract workflows
- 65% Increase in athlete deal flow and autonomy in managing brand partnerships
- Delivered compliance safeguards for schools and organizations
- Received strong feedback from early student-athlete testers on usability and trustworthiness
- Positioned Athlete Ventures as a first mover in an industry projected to grow exponentially
Project Review
Colin Batherson
Founder & CEO Athlete Ventures
“They’ve taken the project into their own hands and done their own research to come back with recommendations. Goji Labs brought both technical skill and strategic understanding. They helped us create a platform that truly puts athletes first.”
