The law
Arizona's college NIL law is A.R.S. § 15-1892 (status: in force). Everything on this page is taken from the enacted text on the legislature's own site, linked under Sources, read on October 21, 2026.
What it says
| Question | What the statute says | Section or source |
|---|---|---|
| Who is covered | Student athletes (as defined in § 15-1762: anyone who engages in, is eligible to engage in or may be eligible in the future to engage in an intercollegiate sport) at a "postsecondary education institution", meaning a university under the Arizona Board of Regents or a degree-granting institution licensed by the state board for private postsecondary education. Community colleges are not in the definition. Intramural and professional sports are excluded | 15-1892(O)(3), (5), (7); 15-1762(9) |
| Disclosure to the school | A student athlete "may not" execute an NIL contract "before disclosing the proposed contract" to the school at which the athlete participates. No number of days is set | 15-1892(D)(1) |
| Banned categories | Not addressed as a list. An athlete may not sign an NIL contract with any provision that conflicts with the school's athletic department policy or honor code, and the section does not authorize a deal that violates anyone's intellectual property rights, including the school's | 15-1892(D)(2)(c), (d); (F)(1) |
| Conflicts with team contracts | An athlete may not execute an NIL contract if any provision conflicts with the athlete's team contract, a contract the school executed, an athletic department policy or the school's honor code. The section does not authorize a contract that conflicts with the team contract | 15-1892(D)(2)(a) to (d); (F)(2) |
| School and coach involvement | A school may give money, assets, resources, opportunities, services or other benefits to an "institutional marketing associate" or third-party entity to incentivize it to facilitate NIL opportunities for athletes. A regulator may not stop a school (including a supporting foundation or entity acting for it) from identifying, creating, negotiating with, facilitating, supporting, assisting or otherwise enabling NIL opportunities. Athletes use school facilities, uniforms, logos and other property only with express authorization. A university or 501(c) organization that helps athletes earn NIL pay may run a raffle under conditions in § 13-3302(E). Coaches are not named | 15-1892(B)(2); (G)(3)(c); (D)(3); 13-3302(E) |
| Direct pay from the school | A school that competes in an intercollegiate sport "may" compensate a student athlete for NIL, but "may not use monies collected from student fees" to do it. A regulator may not stop a school from paying for NIL or for "the student athlete's position on the roster", or from sharing with athletes revenue it receives for commercial use of their NIL | 15-1892(B)(1); (G)(1)(b), (G)(3)(a), (b) |
| Agents and attorneys | An athlete agent advising or representing an athlete on NIL pay complies with the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act (A.R.S. §§ 15-1761 to 15-1775): a signed agency contract with fees, services and duration, a printed warning, notice to the athletic director within 72 hours or before the next athletic event, and a 14-day cancellation right. Arizona repealed agent registration in 2017 (§§ 15-1763 to 15-1769). A regulator may not bench an athlete for obtaining an athlete agent or attorney | 15-1892(E), (G)(1)(c); 15-1770 to 15-1772 |
| High school and minors | Not addressed. The section covers intercollegiate athletes; it sets no parental-consent rule for athletes under 18. The agents act's "student athlete" includes anyone who may be eligible in the future for an intercollegiate sport | 15-1892(O)(3); 15-1762(9) |
| Financial literacy | Not addressed | None |
| Scholarship protection | A school may not consider NIL pay, roster pay or professional representation when deciding scholarship eligibility or renewal, and may not deny or revoke a scholarship or declare an athlete ineligible because the athlete earns NIL pay. Schools also may not consider those activities when rostering or setting an athlete's level of participation | 15-1892(C)(1) to (3) |
| Confidentiality of contracts | Records relating to a contract or proposed contract for the use of an athlete's NIL "are not public records" and are exempt from the public records law (Title 39, ch. 1). Information a school collects about an athlete's NIL contract is confidential | 15-1892(L) |
| NCAA and conference penalties | A "regulator" (any organization with authority over intercollegiate athletic programs, including conferences and associations) may not bench an athlete for NIL pay, roster pay or representation; may not keep a school out of membership or competition over those activities; may not stop a school from paying, sharing revenue or facilitating deals; may not consider a complaint, investigate or take adverse action against a school, marketing associate or third-party entity for conduct the section allows; and may not penalize a school or athlete for a violation of the regulator's NIL rules | 15-1892(G)(1) to (5); (O)(6) |
| Remedies and enforcement | An athlete may sue a school or regulator for injunctive relief. A school, marketing associate or third-party entity may sue to enjoin a regulator's adverse action (including considering a complaint or opening an investigation). If a school finds an athlete violated the section, it notifies the athlete in writing, and if the athlete does not correct it by the tenth day, the school may sue the athlete for injunctive relief. School and third-party employees are not liable for routine athletics decisions that limit an athlete's NIL pay. Title IX rights are unaffected | 15-1892(I) to (K); (M); (N) |
| Employee status | A school may not classify a student athlete as its employee solely because of athletic participation, NIL or roster pay, or shared revenue | 15-1892(H) |
How Arizona's law changed in 2025
- 2021. S.B. 1296 added a short § 15-1892 that tied everything to the national association's rules: schools allowed NIL pay "to the extent allowed by the rules established by the relevant national association", and a scholarship could not be cut for NIL pay "in a manner and to the extent allowed by" those rules (Laws 2021, ch. 141). It took effect on the general effective date, 2021-09-29.
- 2025. S.B. 1615 struck the association-rules limit and rebuilt the section. The governor approved it on 2025-05-07, and because it carried an emergency clause (Sec. 3) it took effect that day, a month before the House settlement was approved on 2025-06-06. It added school pay (§ 15-1892(B)), roster pay and revenue sharing protection (§ 15-1892(G)(1)(b), (G)(3)(b)), the disclosure-before-signing rule (§ 15-1892(D)(1)), confidentiality (§ 15-1892(L)), the employee-status rule (§ 15-1892(H)) and three injunction routes (§ 15-1892(I) to (K)).
- Raffles. The same act added § 13-3302(E): an Arizona Board of Regents university, or a 501(c) organization, that helps athletes earn NIL pay may run a raffle, provided it has existed in Arizona continuously for the year before the raffle, no insider receives a personal benefit and only bona fide local members run it.
Agents in Arizona
Arizona is one of the states where an NIL agent does not register with the state. H.B. 2026 (Laws 2017, ch. 223, approved 2017-05-01) repealed the registration sections, §§ 15-1763 to 15-1769, and renamed the article the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act. What remains applies to NIL work through § 15-1892(E): the contract form and bold warning (§ 15-1770), notice to the athletic director by both agent and athlete within 72 hours or before the next athletic event (§ 15-1771), a 14-day right to cancel that cannot be waived (§ 15-1772), five years of records (§ 15-1773), and a class 1 misdemeanor for false promises, gifts to induce a contract or predated contracts (§ 15-1774). A school may sue an agent or former athlete for damages, including losses from NCAA or conference penalties (§ 15-1775). The agents act's definition of "athlete agent" leaves out a spouse, parent, sibling, grandparent or guardian (§ 15-1762(2)).
How it changed
| Act | What it did | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| S.B. 1296 (55th Leg., 1st Reg. Sess., Laws 2021, ch. 141, approved 2021-03-26) | added A.R.S. § 15-1892 (Title 15, ch. 14, art. 9.1): schools allow NIL pay "to the extent allowed by" the national association's rules, no scholarship loss for NIL pay within those rules, agents follow the athlete agents act, no deal that violates intellectual property rights or conflicts with the team contract | 2021-09-29 |
| S.B. 1615 (57th Leg., 1st Reg. Sess., Laws 2025, ch. 143, approved 2025-05-07, emergency measure) | rewrote § 15-1892: dropped the "to the extent allowed by" association rules limit, let schools pay athletes for NIL (not from student fees) and fund institutional marketing associates, required disclosure of a proposed contract before signing, barred regulators from penalizing athletes or schools, made NIL contract records confidential, added the employee-status rule and injunction routes; also amended A.R.S. § 13-3302 so a university or 501(c) organization that helps athletes earn NIL pay may run a raffle | 2025-05-07 |
Federal law
As of 2026-10-21, S. 4668 (Protect College Sports Act) passed the Senate 77-22 on 2026-09-28 and has been held at the House desk since 2026-10-05, with no House action; it is not law. If enacted as passed, § 121(a)(2) reaches state laws that govern, regulate or invalidate school, conference or association rules on NIL compensation (except as necessary to comply with the bill), transfers or the eligibility rules in § 113, and § 121(a)(1) reaches state laws that conflict with the title so as to prevent compliance. On its text, § 121(a)(2) appears to describe Arizona's bars on regulators (§ 15-1892(G)), the injunction routes that enforce them (§ 15-1892(I), (J)) and the limits on schools weighing NIL activity in rostering and scholarships (§ 15-1892(C)). § 121(b)(1) keeps, unless they conflict with § 121(a), Uniform Athlete Agent Acts and state contract, privacy, consumer protection, trademark and copyright law; Arizona's agents act is titled the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act (§ 15-1761). School pay under § 15-1892(B)(1) matches § 101(c), subject to the revenue share cap in § 114, and § 122 says the title is neutral on employee status (§ 15-1892(H)). S. 4668 would add, only for athletes at schools whose primary membership is in NCAA Division I (§ 101(b)(5)), a duty to report the terms of any deal over $600 to the school and the association or its designated entity within 5 days of signing, and pay over $600 not already reported within 30 days of receiving it (§ 101(b)(1)); a 5% cap on agent fees for endorsement contracts; and a rule that an agent representing an athlete in an endorsement contract "register with a State" (§ 102, new SPARTA §§ 3(a)(5), 9(a)). Arizona has had no agent registration since 2017; SPARTA § 9(b) would count an agent registered with a professional league or players association, or registered under a uniform agent act "in the State in which the agent operates".
What sits on top of it
- Division I reporting. Third-party deals of $600 or more go to NIL Go within five business days, whatever the state's own rule (NIL Go, reporting a deal, level by level).
- Your school. A school can set a stricter policy than the statute, and most set the disclosure process.
- Agents. Arizona's athlete-agent rules are on the state-by-state registration table.
- High school. High school NIL in Arizona is set by the state's athletic association, not this statute.
- Taxes. NIL taxes in plain words.
How Leave fits
In Leave, every deal thread carries a rules summary for the athlete's state and level, and keeps the contract, its dates and the disclosure deadline that applies. It is a summary, not a ruling; the school and the statute decide. Leave is software, not an agent, and takes 0% of any deal. You decide, you send.
Questions about college NIL law in Arizona
What is Arizona's NIL law in 2026?
A.R.S. § 15-1892, first enacted by S.B. 1296 (Laws 2021, ch. 141, in force 2021-09-29) and rewritten by S.B. 1615 (Laws 2025, ch. 143), an emergency measure in force since 2025-05-07. It lets Arizona universities and licensed private degree-granting colleges pay athletes for NIL, requires athletes to disclose a proposed NIL contract to the school before signing, bars conferences and associations from penalizing athletes or schools for conduct the section allows, and makes NIL contract records confidential.
Can Arizona colleges pay athletes directly?
Yes, under state law since 2025-05-07. § 15-1892(B)(1) says a school that competes in an intercollegiate sport may compensate a student athlete for the use of the athlete's own name, image or likeness, but "may not use monies collected from student fees" to do it. § 15-1892(G)(3) says a regulator may not stop a school from paying athletes, sharing NIL revenue with them or facilitating their deals. The section covers Arizona Board of Regents universities and licensed private degree-granting colleges, not community colleges.
Do I have to tell my school about an NIL deal in Arizona?
§ 15-1892(D)(1) says a student athlete may not execute an NIL contract "before disclosing the proposed contract" to the school where the athlete plays. The statute sets no number of days. Under § 15-1892(D)(2), the athlete also may not sign a contract that conflicts with the team contract, a school contract, an athletic department policy or the honor code. What the school collects is confidential and not a public record (§ 15-1892(L)). Separately, NCAA Bylaw 22.2.2 has Division I athletes report third-party deals of $600 or more to the NCAA's designated NIL clearinghouse.
Does Arizona require an NIL agent to be licensed?
No. Arizona repealed athlete agent registration in 2017 (Laws 2017, ch. 223, repealing A.R.S. §§ 15-1763 to 15-1769). § 15-1892(E) says an agent who advises or represents an athlete on NIL pay complies with the Revised Uniform Athlete Agents Act: the agency contract is in a signed record stating fees, services and duration, carries a printed warning, can be cancelled within 14 days, and both the agent and the athlete notify the athletic director within 72 hours or before the next athletic event (A.R.S. §§ 15-1770 to 15-1772).
Are NIL contracts public records at Arizona State, Arizona or Northern Arizona?
No. § 15-1892(L) says records relating to a contract or proposed contract for the use of a student athlete's NIL "are not public records" and are exempt from Arizona's public records law, and information a school collects about an athlete's NIL contract is confidential. The rule applies to Arizona Board of Regents universities and licensed private degree-granting colleges alike.
Be your own agent. Leave.
