NIL Store News
For the first time ever, Big Ten football players will sit down with a designer, build their own custom NIL apparel, and see it go on sale to fans the same day — live from Big Ten Football Media Days, July 28–30 in Chicago.
Big Ten Football Media Days has always been about access — reporters getting time with coaches and players before the season kicks off. This year, the NIL Store and Rally House, the Official Team Shop of the Big Ten Conference, are adding something fans have never seen at a media days event: athletes designing their own officially licensed merchandise, live, with product available to purchase before the day is even over.
A First-of-Its-Kind NIL Apparel Activation
Running across all three days of the event — July 28 through July 30, 2026 — attending student-athletes will get one-on-one time with a dedicated NIL Store apparel designer. Working from a curated menu of custom shirt templates, each athlete will design a piece that reflects their own personal brand, then walk away with a finished, wearable garment.
From there, the process moves fast. The same design gets licensed, printed, and made available for purchase to fans through the Big Ten Team Shop online — turning a single on-site design session into a same-day, shoppable product drop.
How the On-Site Design-to-Shelf Process Works
- Design session: Each athlete works directly with an NIL Store designer to customize a shirt from a curated template menu.
- Photography: Athlete photos are sourced through Big Ten Conference partner Greenfly, which specializes in getting content from student-athletes and schools into production quickly.
- Same-day licensing approval: NIL Store and Rally House work directly with Big Ten and school licensing directors to clear each design for sale the same day it's created.
- Print and sell: Once approved, designs are printed, heat-pressed, and listed for fans to shop on the Big Ten Team Shop site.
Why It Matters
"Rally House and the Big Ten are perfect partners to showcase the future of on-site athlete-driven apparel," said Steven Farag, Campus Ink & NIL Store Co-Founder and CEO. "We enjoy creating never-before-seen experiences and are excited to share this activation with the top football players in the Big Ten Conference."
Rally House sees the activation as a natural extension of how it already serves Big Ten fans as the conference's official team shop.
"Rally House is proud to be the official team shop of the Big Ten Conference, and this partnership with NIL Store is a natural extension of our commitment to delivering meaningful, authentic fan and athlete experiences," said Dana Lewis, Rally House Vice President of Merchandising. "Watching an athlete design their own shirt and knowing that fans across the country will be able to purchase it that same day is something special. We're proud to help lead the next evolution of NIL merchandise alongside the NIL Store."
Where to Watch and Shop
The activation runs July 28–30, 2026, throughout Big Ten Football Media Days in Chicago. Designs created each day will be made available for purchase on the Big Ten Team Shop as licensing approval comes through — meaning fans can shop the collection in near real time as new athlete designs go live.
Shop athlete-designed apparel from Big Ten Football Media Days as it drops.
Shop the Big Ten Team ShopAbout Rally House
Rally House is the Official Team Shop of the Big Ten Conference, offering officially licensed fan gear for college and professional teams nationwide through its retail stores and online at rallyhouse.com.
About NIL Store
NIL Store is the athlete merchandise marketplace of Campus Ink, serving more than 150 schools and 30,000-plus student-athletes with officially licensed NIL apparel, including partnerships with ESPN, the WNBPA, and the MLBPA. Learn more at nil.store.
About Campus Ink
Campus Ink is the parent company of NIL Store, a vertically integrated apparel company with its own production and fulfillment center in Urbana, Illinois, and a portfolio of brands spanning collegiate NIL merchandise, Greek total merch management, and student design programs.
