Nike has reportedly secured its first name, image and likeness deals with athletes at the high school level, signing two California sisters, Alyssa and Gisele Thompson, to a multiyear deal.
Evan Sroka, managing partner of Everest Talent Management who represents the sisters, said Nike signed them to a deal that includes “monetary compensation”, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The agreement was made during a dinner in Los Angeles on Monday. However, the terms of the deal have yet to be announced.
Alyssa and Gisele are soccer players at Harvard-Westlake High School in Los Angeles and also have experience with Team USA national soccer. Alyssa, a junior, was a starter on the USA’s U-20 team that won the CONCACAF championship in March. Gisele, a sophomore, was a starter on the U-17 USA team that won a CONCACAF title on May 8.
Both are committed to play soccer at Stanford following their high school careers. As many discussions have risen in recent weeks about the impact of NIL at the collegiate level, the state of California grants high school athletes the same access as college athletes regarding NIL.
However, per the LA Times, neither Alyssa nor Gisele will be able to wear Harvard-Westlake paraphernalia in their NIL endeavors. Sroka also indicated that the Thompsons reached an agreement on the deal with Stanford’s assistance to ensure that they would preserve their NCAA eligibility.
Nike is no stranger to having soccer be a part of history within the company. When NIL became official at the collegiate level in July 2021, Nike’s first NIL deal of any sort was with a female soccer player in UCLA’s Reilyn Turner in December.
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