The partnership will enhance Collective operations, athlete compensation and compliance
LOS ANGELES, October 13, 2023 – Conquest Collective NIL, the sports marketing agency representing University of Southern California (USC) athletes, has announced a new partnership with Opendorse, the leading athlete marketplace and NIL company. Using Opendorse as its operating system, the partnership will effectively maximize NIL compensation opportunities, while streamlining compliance and communication between the athletes and collective.
The agreement underlines Conquest’s dedication to maximize NIL support for USC athletes. In addition to partnerships with the nation’s leading collectives, Opendorse is home to a network of thousands of brands that use the marketplace to manage commercial NIL campaigns. Opendorse and Conquest aim to expose USC athletes to new opportunities from both the collective and commercial entities.
“USC is a premier program in college sports, and its athletes deserve the very best resources and support,” said founding member Manuel “Mer” Hernandez III. “We’re partnering with Opendorse to make that a reality. This partnership will collectively empower Trojan athletes with the market’s best tools and technology to maximize their opportunities with NIL.
The collective first launched in May 2023 under its mantra, “For the players, by the players”. The group is led by USC alums Hernandez and fellow founding board member Jeff Mckay. It is also supported by USC athlete alumni including LenDale White, JuJu Smith Schuster, Hayes Pullard, Devon Kennard, Marquise Lee, Adoree Jackson, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Uchenna Nwosu, George Farmer, and Randall Telfer.
“There’s no denying the power of the USC brand,” said Opendorse CEO Blake Lawrence. “Trojan athletes have largely thrived in the NIL era, and Conquest Collective will continue to play an enormous role in that success. I’m proud to partner with this organization and pursue its “for the player” mission together.”
Over 30 top NIL collectives currently use Opendorse to streamline compensation, compliance, and communication with student-athletes, and to receive access to the market’s leading insights. The collective partners represent 10 conferences including each Power 5 conference. Additionally, thousands of brands, headlined by 29 of the top 50 Fortune 500 companies, use Opendorse to facilitate NIL deals with athletes.
