Fanstake is a competitive recruitment platform where fans can contribute to an athlete's endorsement deal. What's really unique about it is that it's no risk - If the athlete ends up on your team's roster in the successive season it converts. If not you get your money credited back to your account.

Each stake is good for the upcoming "season" or school year.  So, for example, if you were to stake $5 for a player to come to your school for their junior year, that stake would convert upon that player officially being on the roster and enrolled at the school.  At the end of that year the player would have another open "retention" stake for the successive year, while other fan bases might have "transfer" stakes against that same athlete that are live.

All stakes are "locked" until a player verbally commits to a decision. At that point, Fanstake will release unconverted Stakes back to the fans, but will continue to hold stakes from the "converted" fanbase. Fanstake will engage the athlete in an NIL contract where payments don't commence until the athlete is enrolled and officially on the team's roster.

This is an important nuance and distinction. You are paying Fanstake for our services. You are not directly paying the athlete, nor is this a donation. The amount that is established by the competitive fanbases gives us and the athlete a transparent fair market value for the deal, and Fanstake will offer deals in that range, depending on the sponsorship specifics. Fanstake's platform and service fees includes all engineering and operational costs, significant marketing to engage national fan bases across the country, and dedicated personnel for procuring and creating unique endorsement deals for every athlete on the platform.

From a fan's perspective, however, all you have to worry about is who you want us to endorse and for what team. Fanstake only refunds your payment if we're unable to deliver on that endorsement. In other words, if the athlete isn't associated with your chosen team, or doesn't want to do the endorsement - your payment is refunded to your account as a credit.  From there, you can choose to Stake another player or return the money to your original source of payment (less third party payment transaction fees).

To ensure fairness to all parties and give athletes a transparent view of demand, Stakes are locked until a school decision is made. Fans can add more money to a stake, but they can't remove money from a stake at any point. Stakes are automatically returned to your account if your school's stake doesn't convert. If you have questions or concerns about a particular Stake contact us at support@fanstake.com and we'll do everything we can to resolve it quickly!

Absolutely not. Athletes should determine the school that's best for them based on a variety of factors, their endorsement opportunities through Fanstake being just one of them. We believe choosing a college to play for should be about program fit, academics, coaching, culture, collaboration, opportunities, and many other factors. We obviously feel that money is a variable for all decisions in life, but certainly not the only one, and perhaps not the most important one. Athletes should choose the school that's the best fit for them based on the collective attributes a program has.

Yes! One of the great benefits of the Fanstake model is that you can stake any player you'd like, even if there's a low chance of them selecting your school. The goal is to let the player know there's demand for their abilities at your school and there's a fanbase that's eager to support them. So take a shot. There's no risk if the stake doesn't convert, and if it does - all the better.  Fans win, but can't lose!

Fanstake takes 0% of unconverted stakes, and typically around 6.99% of the converted stakes. The exact number is dependent on the specific endorsement, but athletes will always get at least 90% of the Staked amount, and 3% is allocated to teammates and/or non-profits. Athletes will additionally have the ability to provide a higher percentage to others if they so choose, and if they select to give it all to registered philanthropic organizations, Fanstake will waive its fee entirely. Furthermore, Fanstake is a proud Pledge 1% member, giving back 1% of profits to philanthropic education organizations.

Unfortunately payment processing is a cost that we can't refund, otherwise our model simply wouldn't work. The good news is that we only charge the payment processing fee if you return the money back to your original source of payment. So if you deposit $100 in your account, that $100 can stay in your account and be redistributed to multiple Stakes without ever getting charged a fee.

We love this question.

First off, it's important to address the perception of "pay-for-play" being a bad thing. There's no other industry in the world where you could argue that the preservation of the product is dependent on the labor explicitly not being compensated. It's telling how ingrained "amateurism" has been in our language around college sports in that most fans instinctively assume being paid is inherently a "bad" thing.

Professionals in all industries are paid-to-play, and we're all also able to negotiate in advance. And make no mistake - the NCAA is a $19 BIllion industry built on the labor of these athletes - these are professionals. Our belief is that all professionals should consider the role, the team, the location, the benefits, and of course, the compensation. The good news is that the NCAA has finally made some significant strides towards "revenue-sharing," but even with that, they're still explicitly avoiding categorizing athletes as employees.

Moreover, most schools won't be participating in revenue sharing, and even the ones that will are capping the amount of revenue that they're willing to share with no guarantees around distribution, Title IX compliance, or negotiation rights. Our position is, and always will be, that compensation should be based on fair market value. It requires supply and demand, it requires participation and negotiation from both sides, and it requires a free market.

So, is it explicitly "pay-for-play?" Well...no, actually. Fanstake's mechanism allows for fan bases to expose fair market value for an endorsement deal in advance of an athlete making a decision. It helps athletes understand what the opportunity is, but the NIL deal isn't even offered until after a decision is made. Just like we all make our professional decisions on various factors, we expect athletes to consider academics, location, coaching staff, playing time, facilities, team style, teammates, and - yes - potential financial opportunities.

Fortunately, in March of this year, there was a Federal injunction placed on the NCAA that prohibits them from enforcing any restrictions on negotiating endorsements in advance of selecting a school, which allows Fanstake to expose the market value of which we'll offer them these endorsement deals at. We do want to be clear though - we do not support pay-for-performance, and we have strict anti-harassment policies around this.

A Stake's conversion has no correlation with playing time, availability, or performance. We offer no guarantees as to performance, nor should fans have any expectations around performance.

This is the exciting part. Fanstake has the ability to change the game in a positive way for all parties.

1. Colleges are heading towards an environment that will be good for some, but undoubtably painful for others. While revenue sharing is a good start, the implications of revenue sharing means that it can be highly disruptive to the ecosystem as it stands. Only certain schools can participate, meaning there will be massive discrepancies between power conference schools and the rest of division one.  The premise of Fanstake is built on democratization and fan participation driving competitiveness and an even playing field for all schools. Those that do have money for revenue sharing can offset costs through fan participation, and therefore not be required to make drastic cuts like the proposed elimination of "olympic sports." And those that can't participate in direct rev share still have the ability to compete if you can activate and engage your fanbase. The transparency and free market dynamics bring a democratized college landscape where it's not just the haves and have-nots.

2. The NCAA continues to remain exposed to legal challenges even if the newly established House settlement is adopted. They are still dealing with a patchwork of state laws that supercede NCAA bylaws, and remain in violation of Federal antitrust laws. Fanstake offers a path towards a collective bargaining agreement - the only true sustainable path forward - whereby athletes can agree to negotiated rev share coupled with open NIL opportunities and fan funded endorsement campaigns to reach their true market value. This type of agreement would finally put the NCAA on stable footing for generations to come.

3. Athletes finally have the ability to earn their fair market value. Note that in many cases this may simply be a scholarship - but it's the competitive market that should define that, and that's the value transparency brings. Moreover, Fanstake endorsements provide incentive to stay in school longer, get your degree, and ultimately play for the program that best meets the athlete's needs as a professional and as a student. We expect to see a new generation of dynasty teams where pro-level players are staying 3-4 years, with increased parity across all sports and schools through continued NIL distribution (something that has already started).

4. Lastly, Fans get to play a more direct and vital role in supporting the programs they care most about. We like to think of this piece as democratizing the GM role, where every fan has a fractional vote on who they can and should have on their team. Ultimately, it's the coaches who will offer roster spots, lead the recruiting and determine the makeup of the squad - but fans can finally support in a way that is risk-free and hugely influential.

Yes! Fanstake is an unaffiliated, unbiased for-profit company doing authentic endorsement deals at fair-market value with unmatched transparency. It's a mouthful, but it's what's required to be compliant. Not only is Fanstake compliant with current NCAA rules, but Fanstake is compliant with proposed future NCAA rules as established by the agreed-upon and negotiated House settlement that is still working its way through the legal system.

The main factor to be aware of is that in March of 2024 there was a Federal injunction placed on the NCAA by a Tennessee judge that bars the NCAA from prohibiting athletes from negotiating NIL deals in advance of selecting a program. This seems obvious in retrospect - in that negotiation is so essential to any professional decision - but it was previously explicitly banned, and the NCAA has acknowledged that they will abide by this injunction. Since then, five additional states have signed on to lawsuits against the NCAA to ensure that this ruling is enshrined.

This is highly unlikely, and fraught with legal complications for the NCAA. However, if we are unable to engage the athlete in an endorsement deal for any reason, fans will have their Stakes refunded to their Fanstake account.

We believe Collectives are an important and vital part of the college sports ecosystem today. We're proud members of The Collective Association, and having worked with dozens, we can confidently say the reality is most are operating on extremely tight budgets, allocate the vast majority of it to retention, and are the backbone of the success of the college programs you love. Fanstake works with Collectives by giving them the ability to directly stake or contribute matching stakes to the programs they would like to support. This turns your $10 into $20, and makes your contribution go much further.

While there are no age limits for Staking an athlete, Fanstake doesn't engage in sponsorship deals until the athlete is eighteen, or have parental/power of attorney consent. For example, fans will be able to put Stakes behind the top athletes in high school, but it wouldn't convert to a endorsement deal until that athlete is eighteen, at the selected program and on the associated roster.

No. Fanstake doesn't require any exclusivity, and in fact, we actively support athletes in maximizing all of their opportunities.

No. While every situation is unique, we'd recommend being extremely cautious with any deal that is asking for future equity, exclusivity, or ownership of future earnings.

No problem! If you already have an endorsement offer, you have a few choices.

1. You can divide the endorsement offer in equal amounts to your associated roster.
2. You can donate it to a non-profit of your choice.
3. You can ask to refund it back to the fanbase.

If you haven't received a stake and you'd like to be excluded from the platform, contact us at athletes@fanstake.com and we will remove your information.

Yes. Fanstake will provide tax documents (1099-K) with the specifics of the contract, and it's your responsibility to pay taxes on any money you receive from Fanstake if it reaches the IRS/State thresholds. We'd recommend speaking with a licensed tax accountant or attorney to ensure you're compliant with all state and federal laws.

Great question. If Fanstake already has your profile on the platform (more sports and athletes will be added over time) then there is a "claim this profile" button at the bottom of your profile page. We will go through a process to confirm authenticity, and you'll have access to your profile along with additional functionality.  

Yes. Stakes are payments to Fanstake for our services (operating our platform, marketing to the fan bases and creating the sponsorship campaigns). Once you have selected the program you're going to attend our team will reach out to offer an endorsement contract, or alternatively, you can reach us at athletes@fanstake.com and we'll begin the process. We strive to make every sponsorship as straightforward as possible, and the endorsement opportunities can be as basic as a single social media post. Certain athletes will have the opportunity to do additional sponsorships for higher fees.

The standard deal that Fanstake typically strikes is north of 90% for the athletes, 3% for teammates, and Fanstake keeps less than 7% to operate the platform. However, every endorsement deal is different based on terms of the sponsorship, and many athletes will have opportunities to earn additional compensation.

This and a number of other features are coming soon! Stay Tuned.  

Many of the athletes we work with have agents, and the Fanstake team is happy to work with them. Verification will still be the same process, and if you want your agent to communicate on your behalf they have to be registered in the platform under your account settings. This and a number of other features are coming soon! Stay Tuned.