James Kimball explains NOVO Sports Group's NIL strategy with focus on golf, baseball

For much of the last 15 years, James Kimball has been entrenched in the everyday occurrences of WWE and UFC.

Before forming WWE’s Next In Line (NIL) program in July 2021 when the NCAA allowed name, image and likeness activity at the collegiate level, he worked in athlete development and was the vice president of operations for UFC’s performance institute.

The WWE’s NIL programs have grown to be one of the most respected campaigns in the space, now with nearly 50 athletes. Kimball is diving into NIL full-time with last month’s launch of his NOVO Sports Group.

The firm announced its first signings, including four golfers: Iowa’s Mac McClear, Georgia’s Connor Creasy, UNC Wilmington’s Walker Isley and Colorado State’s Connor Jones. All sit in the top 50 of the PGA Tour University rankings. NOVO has also brought on TCU infielder Fisher Ingersoll, who was the Utah Gatorade Player of the Year 2021.

Along with working at the college level, the firm will sign amateur and professional athletes. In an interview with On3, the former WWE/UFC executive explained his decision to make the career move.

There were two important takeaways from the conversation:

+ Kimball believes there is major room for growth for NIL activity in baseball and golf
+ Using his nearly 15 years of experience in professional sports, NOVO will also work with brands on NIL strategy

The interview has been lightly edited for clarity and context.

Q: Why is now the right time to start an agency and dive full-time into NIL?

Kimball: “I was with WWE for about three years, and was overseeing the function of talent strategy and talent development. I was leading the formation of Next In Line which really kind of put WWE I’d say, objectively, kind of at the forefront of the industry from a brand and property perspective, and certainly was appreciative and proud of what we built with that program. Now venturing on my own, I’d say I don’t think there’s been a time in my career, to be honest, where my experience and skillsets have really so clearly matched with the opportunity within the industry. And I’m at a point now where I feel like the time is right to go create and build – I’ve always been a builder. To do with my own vision and strategy is something that I find extremely rewarding.”

Q: Where will NOVO’s focus be? There were already so many established agencies before NIL even became legal. How do you separate yourself?

Kimball: “There’s certainly a broad swath of college athletes across the country, playing various sports at various levels, who have seen or personally experienced the demands of what it is to be a student-athlete drastically changed in the last two-plus years. It’s increasingly a business, right? Not just kind of the enterprise-level for universities and conferences, but for individuals, certainly. Regarding target athlete groups, while I’d say this – Novo Sports Group is sport agnostic, there are two particular sports that I see thus far in the NIL era, and this is generally speaking, as being underserviced by the industry and as a whole and underemphasized by brands, relative to two really important criteria from my point of view.

“Those criteria is this: A prominent collegiate talent base that serves as a clear pipeline for the majority of talent professionally in the U.S. That’s one. And then two, have been mainstream, established commercial entities for decades of generations. That’s baseball and golf. You look at it in terms of mainstream, commercial appeal, robust fan bases, robust commercial brand partnerships, and very clearly a majority of talents in those professional sports have come from the U.S. collegiate system. The real focus for us coming out of the gate, as we grow, will be spending a lot of our time and resources making real in-roads in those spaces. Again, sport agnostic, but in terms of emphasis, baseball and golf.”

Q: What will the inner workings look like? Does the group already have a team built out?

Kimball: “It’s a small team with the plan to grow. I categorize it as boutique, like the industry as a whole nascent in its formation and looking to grow. There’s a small group and the agency will cover all professional-level support services from the obvious of handling marketing and endorsements to legal representation, compliance and digital media public relations strategy, through fan engagement and charitable efforts. We’ll be a full, one-stop shop for prospective athletes and obviously, a focus and emphasis will be on collegiate athletes as they transition professionally. And then on the brand and property side, too. That’s the other thing that I mentioned is while the pillar services, athlete representation, we’ll be providing consultation across brands and properties.

“Obviously, I’ve been on that side of the ball for nearly 15 years, virtually all of which, in a role that in some capacity, was focused on finding and delivering these synergies across athlete and brand strategy. So I’m coming from that perspective to where I had that acute knowledge of the conversations that take place at a blue chip, global brand, or property, relating to an athlete and how to best operationalize a given initiative where athletes are at the center. We’ll be providing services across that space as well.”

Q: Golf and baseball are two stark contrasts from WWE. Why do you feel like you can approach the two sports at a high level?

Kimball: “Look, I’d say this, particularly around, let’s say WWE as an entity as an example. I think there is the product, which is a combat-based product. But in reality, the business behind the product is akin and similar to any of your, let’s call it more mainstream sports, domestically. I don’t think because that athlete base necessarily operates in the combat space, doesn’t mean that the business was strictly in that narrow lane. I will say this, from the WWE perspective, something that we touted a lot for the Next In Line program. There are nearly 50 athletes in that program, they represent 13 different sports, so a majority of the WWE superstar talents come from more traditional sports. So 13 different sports, 40 All-American honors. Twelve national championships, so there is that previous experience working across a number of sports.”

Q: Golf seems to be a sport with plenty of potential. We saw a glimpse of it with Sam Bennett at the Masters in April. What is your take on the role NIL could play in golf?

Kimball: “Particularly around professional golf, obviously, everyone has an understanding of what an athlete looks like when they’re walking up the 18th fairway on Saturday or Sunday and the brands represented across their apparel. Obviously, there are some differences between collegiate athletes and how they can monetize certain spaces within their apparel. But look, just like any other sport and any other kind of national brand that’s following the NIL space. I think you’ll see some of those endemic brands to golf start to activate in the space. I think you’ll see additional, maybe a regional or local brand that is supported by alumni bases across the sport of golf. And I think it’s a game that’s still growing in popularity, despite the fact that it’s been wildly successful for generations.

“I view it as a growth sport. I think there’s a lot of positive conversation and discussion around the sport. Obviously, there’s been a lot of activity with the PGA Tour and the partnership with LIV over the summer. I think just with that, there’s been a lot of attention. I view it as emerging from the NIL college athlete perspective.”