Most NIL offers are legitimate, but the space is young and money moves fast, which means bad actors find families early, especially families who are new to all of this. The seven red flags below cover nearly every bad deal parents report. Spot even one, and the right move is to slow down and ask more questions before anyone signs.

1. Are they asking for money up front?

The classic NIL scam asks your family to pay first: a "registration fee," a "marketing package," or a pitch to buy a cut of your athlete's future earnings at a steep discount, sometimes framed as 25 to 50 percent of what those earnings are supposedly worth. Real brands pay athletes. Money should flow toward your athlete, not away from them. Any arrangement where your family writes the first check deserves extreme skepticism, and any "investment" pitch promising guaranteed future NIL income should be walked away from entirely. Some versions are dressed up as "marketing retainers" or "profile verification fees." Others are framed as loans against future deals, with terms that quietly hand over a large share of whatever your athlete earns later, plus fees, whether or not those earnings ever appear.

2. Are they rushing you to sign?

Pressure is a tool. "This offer expires tonight." "We only have two roster spots left." "Sign now or lose it forever." Legitimate companies can wait a couple of days while a parent reads a contract and a lawyer glances at it. Artificial deadlines exist to stop you from doing exactly that. The bigger the urgency, the slower you should move. A deal that cannot survive one weekend of due diligence was never a good deal. Watch for the softer version of the same tactic too: flattery with a countdown. "We only do this for a handful of athletes, and we need an answer by Friday." Real brands have timelines, but they also have contracts, references, and patience.

3. Is there no written contract?

Verbal promises are worth nothing once money is involved. If a brand will not put the deliverables, payment terms, and rights in writing, assume the terms do not exist. The same goes for contracts they refuse to let you keep, or documents they want signed in the moment without review time. Ask for the full document, read it at your own pace, and keep a copy. Our checklist of questions to ask before signing an NIL deal covers what that document should contain.

4. Are the deliverables suspiciously vague?

"Post about us sometimes." "Help promote the brand." "Opportunities for exposure." Vague deliverables let a company demand endless work, and they let a scammer claim your athlete owes something undefined. Real deals name the posts, the appearances, and the timelines. And exposure is not payment; your athlete cannot deposit it. If most of the deal's value is promises of future opportunities rather than money or clearly priced product, be careful. Ask the simple question out loud: "Can you write down exactly what my athlete will do, and exactly what you will pay, in the contract?" The hesitation in the answer is information.

5. Can you verify the company actually exists?

Before anything is signed, search the company name. Look for a real website with some history, a physical address, and registration in your state's business database, which is usually a free search on the secretary of state's website. Look for other athletes or families who have worked with them, and ask for references you can actually contact. A brand-new entity with no track record, a generic email address, and a slick pitch deck is a pattern worth recognizing. Do the same check on the person contacting you. A real scout or brand representative has a verifiable role at a verifiable company, a professional email address on the company's own domain, and a history you can find. Be cautious with anyone who exists only as a social media profile and a phone number.

6. Is the "agent" asking for fees before doing any work?

Real NIL agents and marketing representatives typically earn a percentage of the deals they negotiate, commonly 15 to 20 percent. They get paid when your athlete gets paid. Be wary of anyone demanding large retainers, "membership fees," or payment for "access" before a single deal exists. Many states regulate athlete agents and require registration, so ask for proof, ask which athletes they currently represent, and verify those athletes are real and reachable. A legitimate representative will not be offended by the questions. Also ask how they are paid and by whom. An agent whose fee comes from the brand has different incentives than one working for your family, and you deserve to know which you are dealing with.

7. Could this deal cost your athlete eligibility?

Some deals are not scams but are still dangerous. A personal endorsement that conflicts with a school or conference sponsor can violate team rules. Deals of $600 or more are disclosed through the NIL Go clearinghouse for many college athletes, and schools have their own approval processes on top. At the high school level, state associations set their own NIL rules, and they vary widely; our guide on whether high school athletes can sign NIL deals explains how to check yours. A company that tells you to keep the deal quiet from the school is telling you something important about itself.

Why are athlete families such a target?

Scammers go where money and inexperience meet. NIL is new enough that most parents have never seen a real contract, yet the headlines make every family believe a big offer could be one email away. Add a motivated athlete who wants to say yes, a parent who does not want to crush a dream, and a process that often starts in direct messages, and you have ideal conditions for a con. Knowing this is not a reason to be cynical about every offer. It is a reason to run every offer through the same calm filter, so the good ones prove themselves and the bad ones expose themselves.