Toyota Motor North America is partnering with Stadion Sports to provide education services for athletes and the Toyota Dealer Network in the new era of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL).
Earlier in May, Toyota announced a ground-breaking program to provide nearly $5 million in support directly to Paralympic athletes competing in Tokyo and Beijing. This comes at a time of seed change for student-athletes with NIL and rapidly changing legislation across the NCAA, state legislatures and the U.S. Congress.
As part of the nearly one-year long engagement encompassing two Olympic and Paralympic Games periods, Stadion Sports will provide strategic planning for NIL, virtual education sessions for athletes, and a “digital playbook” available to all 1,200 Toyota dealerships. Many of those dealerships are located in university markets across the country that could engage student-athletes as NIL legislation is finalized.
Stadion Sports will work with Toyota so the deserving Paralympic athletes can maximize this support funding and be prepared.
“Toyota is pleased to partner with Stadion Sports to assist these incredible athletes in streamlining the process of our available sponsorship opportunities,” said Dedra DeLilli, group manager, sponsorship, integration, & activation, Toyota Motor North America. “Stadion Sports understands how to navigate the rapidly evolving NIL environment, and we feel their expertise will really benefit the Paralympians that choose to be a part of this opportunity with Toyota.”
“We have a perfect storm with the postponed Olympic and Paralympic Games and the rapidly evolving world of NIL coming together at the same time,” said Stadion Sports Co-Founder Matt Farrell. “For Stadion Sports our objective is to support student-athletes & Paralympic hopefuls for their opportunity to work with Toyota now and Toyota dealers in the future.”
“This is a once-in-a-career moment for these Paralympians to work with a world-renowned brand such as Toyota, so we want to help them navigate NIL effectively,” added Farrell. "We are honored to work with a brand that is committed to expanding opportunities for athletes by believing in their dreams and providing unprecedented levels of direct support.”