- High school NIL
- Permitted with conditions
- High school authority
- Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA)
- High school rule
- CHSAA Constitution and Bylaws, Article 20 (Amateur Status), Rules 2000.1 to 2000.8, including 2000.4 on NIL
- High school effective
- April 2022, approved by the Legislative Council 88 percent to 12 percent. Language clarified for the 2025-26 school year, effective July 2025.
- College NIL
- Permitted
- College law
- Colorado Senate Bill 20-123, C.R.S. § 23-16-301 et seq., amended by HB 21-1232, SB 23-293, and HB 25-1041 (2025)
- College effective
- SB 20-123 signed March 20, 2020, one of the first in the country, with provisions effective from 2021 onward. HB 25-1041 effective 2025.
- Paperwork
- Check your school district's own disclosure expectations
- Penalty
- Violations of the amateur rule in Article 20 cost amateur status and CHSAA eligibility.
Where high school NIL stands in Colorado.
Colorado allowed high school NIL in April 2022, when the CHSAA Legislative Council voted overwhelmingly to amend the amateur rule so athletes may monetize their name, image, and likeness as long as there is no affiliation with a CHSAA member school. For 2025-26 the association rewrote the language to make the boundaries clearer without changing what is allowed.
The rule is a connection test: a student may benefit from NIL provided it is not connected to their CHSAA high school, team, or activity program. No school uniform, equipment, logo, name, or intellectual property may be used. CHSAA partnered with Triple Threat Leadership in October 2024 to provide NIL education to member schools and families.
Effective: April 2022, approved by the Legislative Council 88 percent to 12 percent. Language clarified for the 2025-26 school year, effective July 2025.
What a high school athlete can and can't do.
Allowed
- ✓Brand deals, endorsements, and paid promotional appearances
- ✓Paid social media content and merchandise
- ✓Camps, lessons, and autographs in the athlete's own name
Not allowed
- ×Any connection to the athlete's CHSAA school, team, or activity program
- ×School uniforms, equipment, logos, names, or other school intellectual property
- ×Filming NIL content on school grounds or at school events
- ×Accepting cash for playing any part of a sport, or signing a professional contract (Rule 2000.12)
- ×Deals used as inducements to attend a particular school
The high school checklist.
- →Apply the connection test to every deal: if it references or relies on the school or team, it fails
- →Keep all content off school grounds and free of school identifiers
- →Check your school district's own disclosure expectations
- →Use the CHSAA and Triple Threat education resources before signing
Agents and advisors
The CHSAA bylaw does not bar NIL representation. Colorado regulates athlete agents by statute. MSG works with Colorado high school athletes on NIL and brand within the connection test.
Penalties
Violations of the amateur rule in Article 20 cost amateur status and CHSAA eligibility.
College NIL in Colorado.
Colorado was one of the first states to pass a college NIL law, signing SB 20-123 in March 2020. It declares that every college athlete in the state has a right to be paid for their NIL and to hire representation, and that no athlete may be forced to give up those rights to compete. Athletes must disclose NIL contracts to the athletic director within 72 hours or before their next scheduled event, whichever is sooner, and contracts may not conflict with team contracts.
The original law barred schools from compensating athletes directly. HB 25-1041, signed in 2025, reversed that: it authorizes Colorado public universities to pay athletes directly in line with the House settlement, exempts athlete identities and contract details from the Colorado Open Records Act, and requires institutions to report aggregated NIL spending to the Department of Higher Education annually by gender and sport. Air Force Academy cadets remain barred from NIL under federal rules.
Effective: SB 20-123 signed March 20, 2020, one of the first in the country, with provisions effective from 2021 onward. HB 25-1041 effective 2025.
Colorado law: key points
- ✓Right to NIL compensation and to hire representation, enforceable by the athlete
- ✓Contracts must be disclosed to the athletic director within 72 hours or before the next event
- ✓Contracts may not conflict with team contracts; team contracts may not block outside NIL activity
- ✓Direct institutional payments authorized and NIL contracts exempt from open records since HB 25-1041; annual aggregate reporting by gender and sport required
- ✓Air Force Academy athletes cannot participate in NIL under federal rules
National framework (House settlement)
Since July 1, 2025, college NIL runs on two tracks. Third-party deals with brands and businesses remain open, and the House v. NCAA settlement now lets Division I schools that opted in pay athletes directly, capped at roughly $20.5 million per school in the first year and rising annually. State law sits on top of that framework and can add rules, but cannot take the federal settlement terms away.
- →Third-party NIL deals of $600 or more must be reported through the NIL Go clearinghouse, generally within five business days, and are reviewed for fair market value
- →Direct payments from a school count against that school's revenue-sharing cap; third-party deals do not
- →The College Sports Commission handles enforcement tied to settlement rules; the NCAA still governs eligibility
- →Every school also has its own NIL policy on disclosure, prohibited categories, and use of school marks, and it applies alongside state law
- →Federal NIL legislation has been proposed repeatedly and remains unresolved
Major Sports Group
What this means for a Colorado athlete.
Denver is a top-twenty media market and Colorado has been open since 2022, so the rules are settled and brands understand them. Athletes in the Front Range have real local opportunity.
The CHSAA connection test is simple to state and easy to fail by accident: a sponsored post on the school field, or a caption that names the team, is a violation. MSG plans every Colorado shoot and caption around it.
Colorado NIL FAQ.
Can high school athletes in Colorado do NIL deals?
Yes, since April 2022. CHSAA Bylaw 2000 allows a student to benefit from NIL provided it is not connected to their CHSAA high school, team, or activity program, and uses no school uniforms, equipment, logos, or names.
Did CHSAA change its NIL rule in 2025?
No. For the 2025-26 school year CHSAA clarified the language of Bylaw 2000.4 to make the boundaries clearer. The association said nothing was added or taken away.
Can a Colorado high school athlete film a sponsored post at school?
No. NIL activity must have no connection to the school, which means no school grounds, uniforms, logos, or team references.
Can a Colorado high school athlete have an agent?
The CHSAA bylaw does not restrict NIL representation. Colorado regulates athlete agents by statute.
Where can Colorado families learn the NIL rules?
CHSAA partnered with Triple Threat Leadership in October 2024 to provide NIL education to member schools, athletes, and families.
What is Colorado's college NIL law?
Senate Bill 20-123, signed March 20, 2020, one of the first in the country. It guarantees the right to NIL compensation and representation, requires disclosure to the athletic director within 72 hours, and bars conflicts with team contracts. HB 25-1041 (2025) exempts NIL contracts from open-records requests.
Can Colorado and Colorado State pay athletes directly?
Yes, for schools that opted into the House settlement, since July 1, 2025, within the revenue-sharing cap. The Air Force Academy is barred from NIL under federal rules.
- CHSAA bylaw changes for 2025-26 (CHSAANow, July 2025)
- How Colorado is navigating NIL at the high school level (Colorado Springs Gazette, November 2024)
- Colorado state NIL law summary (Eccker Sports Group)
- Colorado NIL laws 2025 (RallyFuel, January 2026)
- NIL Rules in 2026: updated guide (Sportsepreneur, June 2026)
Rules change, sometimes mid-season. This page reflects the sources above as of August 2026 and is general information, not legal advice. Confirm the current position of the Colorado High School Activities Association, your college\u2019s NIL policy, and your school before signing anything.