BEAR NATION EXCHANGE
CONWAY, Ark. _ The University of Central Arkansas Athletics Department has entered into a new partnership with INFLCR, an arm of Teamworks, to launch the Bear Nation Exchange, which will benefit UCA student-athletes in pursuing Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) business opportunities.
Local, regional and national businesses and individuals can register with Bear Nation Exchange through the UCA athletics department website (ucasports.com). UCA's student-athletes may then sign deals with the businesses for opportunities such as public appearances, social media promotions and endorsements, athletic camps and private lessons, autograph signings and much more.
"INFLCR is another powerful tool offered through the Teamworks platform," said Dr. Brad Teague, UCA's director of athletics. "These tools make our programs more efficient and effective in promoting our brand as a great Division I program. This addition of INFLCR and creation of the Bear Nation Exchange provides our student-athletes with the best tool to maximize their NIL opportunities.
"We are very pleased to be able to provide this for our over 500 student-athletes. We appreciate Teamworks as a great partner in many areas for our athletics program."
The Bear Nation Exchange will be the home for all of UCA Athletics' NIL information, education, opportunities and reporting. Members of the business community will now be able to partner directly with student-athletes on brand-focused activities, provided they are within legal protocols and follow the UCA NIL guidelines and are approved in advance by the UCA Athletics compliance staff.
Once a business, organization or individual registers on the Bear Nation Exchange they will have access to a searchable database of UCA student-athletes, and filter that database through a variety of criteria. They will have the ability to message the student-athlete directly in the application or request contact information to begin discussions about any potential NIL transaction. INFLCR and UCA Athletics will not be involved in any of the negotiations.
Upon finalization of an NIL deal within the local exchange, student-athletes will then be able to complete a compliance disclosure within the INFLCR app. The app will also include a payment processing tool for the business to securely and directly pay the student-athlete, with no transaction fees. All disclosure and payment data automatically reports to the institution's existing INFLCR compliance portal, and any payments processed using this tool will be reported on a consolidated 1099 that lives in the student-athlete's INFLCR app for more efficient tax reporting.
"We are excited to partner with Central Arkansas Athletics to launch the Bear Nation Exchange," shared INFLCR General Manager Sean Kelly. "This investment in NIL will allow UCA student-athletes to capitalize on their personal brand and explore new NIL opportunities. We're excited to see what they accomplish with the Bear Nation Exchange!"
About INFLCR & Local Exchange
INFLCR, available on Teamworks' Operating System for Sports™, is the leading athlete brand-building and NIL business management app for over 270 elite collegiate and professional sports organizations. The INFLCR athlete app educates student-athletes, coaches, and staff for the NIL era in a safe and compliant environment, all powered by best-in-class content delivery for student-athletes to access and share content to their social media channels.
The INFLCR platform also includes the impactful INFLCR Local Exchange, a school-customized NIL exchange where schools can direct businesses, collectives, and fans seeking to find, communicate with, pay, and report NIL transactions with student-athletes. The INFLCR Local Exchange maximizes the student-athlete wallet share while streamlining compliance and tax reporting responsibilities. To learn more about the INFLCR Local Exchange, please visit teamworks.com/inflcr.
