Ohio, Brandr Group announce group licensing deal

Ohio athletics and The Brandr Group (TBG) have announced a new group licensing deal for student-athletes in 16 different sports.

This licensing deal will help student-athletes at Ohio profit off their name, image and likeness, giving them access to university logos and trademarks. The Bobcats are the first MAC school to offer this type of licensing deal. Specifically, this will allow athletes to profit from merchandise with their name and number, as well as official Ohio logos.

“We believe in preparing our student-athletes to maximize their NIL endeavors, and the group licensing product offered by The Brandr Group fits perfectly into that support plan,” Ohio athletic director Julie Cromer said in a press release.

“This co-branded merchandise opportunity is an enhancement for our fans and our student-athletes with new, player-specific merchandise soon to be available on the shelves of their favorite Bobcats retail outlets.”

Importantly, TBG will support the collective use of NIL through marketing programs and facilitate opportunities on behalf of student-athletes. Student-athletes only participate if they want to do so.

“NIL opens up exciting opportunities for student-athletes across college sports, and this group licensing agreement with Ohio University allows its student-athletes to capitalize on this new environment,” said Rick Perko, Vice President of Program Development at TBG.

“Ohio student-athletes are now able to financially benefit from their NIL through co-branded opportunities across Ohio’s merchandising and sponsor portfolio. This also provides new ways for fans to support their favorite players.”

About the Brandr Group

The Brandr Group is a brand management, marketing, and licensing agency. They have worked in the marketing space for years before NIL was allowed. That experience includes managing group rights programs with professional leagues like the NFL, NBA, and MLB.

They team up with prominent brands, sponsors, athletes, and other similar entities. Their goal is to cultivate, diversify and monetize intellectual property through professional brand management and licensing.

The Brandr Group has entered similar deals with schools like Michigan.