Florida Victorious Answers Questions About NIL

Florida Victorious is an independent NIL collective that provides opportunities for UF student-athletes. Additionally, they partner with businesses and organizations, while working with student-athletes to give back to the Gainesville community.

Chief Executive Officer Nate Barbera and Director of Revenue Freddie Wehbe addressed questions regarding NIL deals.

Staying at the Top of NIL

One of the biggest factors in staying at the top of NIL is building out the team, Wehbe said.

Currently, Florida Victorious has 11 staff members working to drive NIL forward.

“It’s thinking about what we can do today and what we can do tomorrow,” Wehbe added.

Additionally, the organization currently has nine charity partners, and Wehbe says that they hope to get to 12-15 in the near future.

The Future of NIL

Wehbe admitted that the future of NIL is very unclear, as the space is ever-changing.

“We don’t know where it’s going to go,” he said.

He also stated that Florida Victorious cannot let unknowns get in the way of doing their best today.

Additionally, Wehbe said they need to focus on supporting their student athletes today, despite an unclear future.

When Do Players Get Paid?

When asked when the players get paid, Wehbe stated that they get paid after they do the work. That is, after they do work with Florida Victorious’ charity partners.

He said that if players do not show up for charity events, they won’t get paid. Additionally, if a player is late, they will get reduced compensation.

Wehbe said that the players’ job is not to play, but rather to support Florida Victorious and their many charity partners.

He also stated that the organization gets the final say on compensation.

Student-Athlete Limitations

One of the limitations for a student-athlete with Florida Victorious is that they cannot go live on air and discuss specifics of their deals, Wehbe said.

“We don’t talk about compensation openly in any other world,” he said.

Additionally, there is no contact between the student-athlete and Florida Victorious before the athlete’s arrival on campus, per NCAA guidelines.

Wehbe stated that the athlete has to be a freshman or transfer in school, taking classes before any contact is made.

Help From Gator Nation

Barbera was vocal in his statement regarding the role that all of Gator Nation will play in Florida Victorious’ goals.

He advocated for Florida’s fans to be involved and be aware about what Florida Victorious does and how they can get involved.

“We need to win, and to win we need money,” he said.

In order to do that, Barbera says that everyone involved with the University of Florida needs to play a part.