Minnesota soccer players land teamwide NIL deal with legal icon, YouTube star Darryl Isaacs

Team-wide NIL deals are common in the third year of the NIL Era. Yet, in most cases, team NIL opportunities are focused on male athletes. But that wasn’t the case at Minnesota, where the Gophers women’s soccer team was featured in the school’s first-ever teamwide NIL partnership.

Darryl “The Hammer” Isaacs of Isaacs & Isaacs Personal Injury Lawyers announced Tuesday his firm struck an NIL partnership with members of the Minnesota women’s soccer program.

You might recognize Isaacs’ Louisville, Kentucky, based firm through his viral Super Bowl commercials.

Over the years, three of his Super Bowl commercials have generated nearly 30 million views on YouTube. This includes the 2020 version that shows Isaacs and his “hammer” putting a beat down on big insurance companies. It has more than 14 million views alone. Over the years, Isaacs has also established himself as one of the most recognized attorneys in the Midwest. His firm has recovered more than $2 billion for its clients, including a recent verdict of $10 million.

In addition to being the first-ever teamwide deal at Minnesota, the partnership is the largest single NIL opportunity for athletes in a women’s sport at Minnesota.

The terms of the deal were not released. However, the players are expected to be featured in branded content with Isaacs in the near future. The deal was facilitated by Dinkytown Athletes, the official NIL collective of Gopher athletics.

“This partnership will bring tremendous visibility to the team as well as Darryl,” Dinkytown co-founder and president Derek Burns said in a release. “We hope it jump-starts continued support for women’s sports.”

Minnesota soccer players are perfect partners for Isaacs

Isaacs said he embraced the first-of-its-kind deal for the team.

“As an attorney, I know how much I rely on my entire legal team for a victory in court,” Isaacs said in the release. “It’s no different in soccer. Individual players score goals and make saves. But it’s the team that wins games.”

Jeremiah Carter, the senior associate athletics director for NIL at Minnesota, called the deal a groundbreaking opportunity.

“These student-athletes will be tremendous ambassadors for Isaacs & Isaacs,” Carter said. “We believe that it will lead the way for others in the business community to see how student-athlete NIL, done the right way, can benefit both the student-athlete and the company to bring added visibility to their brand.”

Burns said he wasn’t surprised Isaacs embraced the first-of-its-kind deal for the team.

“Darryl understands the value of supporting talent at a crucial point in their professional development,” Burns said. “But he also understands the immense value in hiring athletes to promote your brand.”

The Minnesota women’s soccer program is widely recognized as one of the best in the Big Ten. The Gophers have won six conference championships and are off to a 4-2-2 start on the 2023 season.