WWE has announced a new NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) program aimed at recruiting college athletes. This follows the historic NCAA policy that went into effect this summer allowing college athletes to monetize their name, image, and likeness.
“Dubbed “Next In Line,” the NIL program aims to enhance the talent development process through collaborative partnerships with college athletes from diverse athletic backgrounds,” reads a WWE press release.
Triple H was also quoted in today’s press release announcing the Next In Line program.
“The WWE NIL program has the potential to be transformational to our business,” said Paul Levesque, WWE Executive Vice President, Global Talent Strategy and Development. “By creating partnerships with elite athletes at all levels across a wide variety of college sports, we will dramatically expand our pool of talent and create a system that readies NCAA competitors for WWE once their collegiate careers come to a close.”
Part of the program will include college athletes being able to train at the WWE Performance Center. Athletes will also receive education on things such as brand building, media training, live event promotion and more. Upon completion of the program some athletes will be offered a WWE contract.
This program comes on the heels of WWE signing Olympic Gold medalist, Gable Steveson. He will return to school for his senior year and defend his NCAA championship at the University of Minnesota. WWE also announced they will unveil the first class of athletes in the program soon.
