PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas (AP) 鈥� Marta Suarez stepped in front of the white backdrop, rotated the basketball to put the logo forward and propped it against her hip. She looked into the camera and smiled, her head tilting slightly to the right.
Flashes came in quick succession. Music streamed from a nearby Bluetooth speaker. Suarez lifted the ball onto her right shoulder and smiled again, and soon was spinning the ball on her finger from a squatted pose.
鈥淕et the bruises,鈥� she quipped, pointing to a knee exposed by her cutoff jeans.
Only a few hours had passed since the third-year forward from Spain . This part of the trip 鈥� in a foyer outside the Atlantis resort鈥檚 Grand Ballroom 鈥� was for herself, available only because the Lady Vols were in the Bahamas.
because student visa rules largely prohibit off-campus work while in the U.S. But a growing number are using a loophole when they leave the country, doing the legwork needed 鈥� but not allowed on U.S. soil 鈥� to eventually profit from the use of their name, image and likeness (NIL).
At holiday tournaments in the Bahamas this fall, worked with about three dozen international athletes to create photos, videos and introductory podcasts that could be used for potential deals.
Founder and chief executive Tyler Jaynes said the sessions are something Influxer wants 鈥渢o repeat over and over.鈥� There鈥檚 no guarantee they will lead to deals for international athletes, but it's an avenue for them to find what might be out there.
鈥淗aving fun?鈥� Jaynes asked Suarez during a pause in her shoot.
鈥淵eah,鈥� she said, nodding back to the speaker. 鈥淭he music.鈥�
鈥淵es,鈥� Jaynes said, 鈥渨e鈥檝e thought of everything.鈥�
That鈥檚 the hope for international athletes hoping to cash in on their fame like their American teammates.
鈥淚鈥檓 just glad right now we at least get a chance to do something, even if it鈥檚 just outside the U.S.,鈥� said DePaul鈥檚 Brendan Favre, a graduate student guard from Switzerland. 鈥淚t鈥檚 still nice to be able to do something.鈥�
, according to NCAA data. The obstacle for them to make NIL money is federal immigration law, not NCAA rules.
for athletes to earn NIL money and deals worth millions have been struck across the country. But the majority of international athletes are on F-1 student visas prohibiting off-campus work except in rare exceptions such as internships or work-study programs. Violations could lead to the visa's termination, and deportation.
Blake Lawrence, co-founder/CEO of , said it is unclear exactly how much international athletes are missing out. But with their presence in men鈥檚 and women鈥檚 basketball, two of the most marketable and compensated sports, he said it takes merely 鈥渄eductive reasoning鈥� to know there is an impact.
Now the market is evolving to address it.
鈥淎dministrators and coaches are trying to solve this problem, and it will be solved,鈥� Lawrence said. 鈥淚t will not be as convenient as driving down the street and signing autographs. But international student-athletes that are having an impact from their community will benefit from NIL. They just might have to take a flight or a longer drive.鈥�
Influxer launched late last year to connect athletes with companies, with a goal of becoming a full-service NIL company with merchandising and consulting. It's led by people familiar with college sports, including Jaynes, a former Baylor football player.
Jaynes said Influxer has spent months talking with school compliance staffers and immigration attorneys to ensure nothing jeopardizes athlete visas. They鈥檝e also studied state NIL laws.
鈥淲e understand it鈥檚 a very sensitive subject with a lot of potential ramifications if not done the right way,鈥� Jaynes said.
Influxer paid athletes the same, unspecified amount for their time at the Bahamas sessions, Jaynes said. After creating the marketing materials, Influxer can sell them to brands for use in a brokered endorsement deal. Athletes could then receive royalties as permissible 鈥減assive鈥� income, meaning it came through signing a licensing agreement for existing materials as opposed to a work activity such as making a commercial.
Influxer鈥檚 first offshore shoot came in August when Kentucky big man Oscar Tshiebwe 鈥� last season鈥檚 Associated Press men鈥檚 college basketball player of the year, from the Democratic Republic of the Congo 鈥� visited the Bahamas for the Wildcats鈥� exhibition tour.
The company replicated that on a broader scale last month . Players came and went between meals, shootarounds and games.
Suarez and Australian teammate Jessie Rennie arrived carrying their jerseys. Favre and Canadian teammate Nick Ongenda soon followed from Baha Mar, carrying their own DePaul jerseys. Influxer staffers briefly introduced themselves, then the athletes got to work.
Rennie sat down for a podcast focused on her background. Suarez headed to a director鈥檚 chair for a stylist to freshen her makeup and hair ahead of her photo shoot.
Ongenda and Favre were soon joking and mugging together at the photo set before breaking off for their own sessions.
鈥淚 love being in front of the camera on and off the court,鈥� Ongenda said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great experience. I鈥檓 glad they reached out and let us know about this opportunity.鈥�
That includes collecting photos with an eye toward versatility. With Favre, for example, some included him holding his empty hand palm up 鈥� ready for an item to be added later via photo editing software to accommodate a specific branding deal.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 great, you can put so many different things there,鈥� Jaynes said, swiping through the shots on an iPad.
Rennie, sidelined this year with a knee injury, has been happy to see teammates get deals. Like Suarez, she couldn鈥檛 help but feel disappointed at being unable to do the same. Still, she didn鈥檛 commit to Influxer鈥檚 shoot until having enough conversations to feel it was OK.
鈥淲e do Tennessee photo shoots all the time,鈥� Rennie said, 鈥渂ut it was nice to do something that was more about me and who I am and it鈥檚 going to be for my benefit, if that makes sense.鈥�
Influxer returned three days later before the men鈥檚 Atlantis tournament, with Southern California鈥檚 Australian big man, Harrison Hornery, visiting as the day鈥檚 final appointment.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been frustrating at USC and being such a high-profile school, and all those NIL opportunities that everyone is getting,鈥� Hornery said. 鈥淲e have people come to practice and pitch us stuff all the time, and I鈥檓 just like, 鈥楳an, I can鈥檛 do it.鈥欌��
鈥淚鈥檓 not saying I need X amount of dollars to make me happy,鈥� he added. 鈥淛ust being here and getting the opportunity to do a cool shoot and then do a podcast with those guys over there 鈥� and whatever happens, happens.鈥�
Influxer ultimately worked with roughly 35 international athletes through the Thanksgiving holiday week, the final session coming in a Nassau studio.
Ask Jaynes about what鈥檚 next for Influxer, and he mentions events beyond basketball such as college golf tournaments in Mexico and elsewhere in the Bahamas. Director of business development Steve McLean even imagines a large-scale media day for international athletes, complete with corporate sponsorship.
鈥淭here鈥檚 going to be a lot of trial and error,鈥� McLean said of future events, 鈥渁nd we鈥檙e open to all of it.鈥�
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Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/aaronbeardap
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This story has been corrected to show that there are roughly 14,000 international athletes in Division I, not more than 100,000.
Aaron Beard, The Associated Press
