Athlete & NIL Planning
Athletes earn a large share of their lifetime income in a short, uncertain window — often before anyone has taught them how to manage it. We help athletes and their families protect earning power, reduce exposure to risk, and build income that continues long after the final season.
Built for a Career That Pays Early and Ends Early
An athlete can earn more in five years than most people earn in thirty — and then face fifty years of life after the money stops arriving. Planning has to account for both halves.
We work with athletes at every stage, from a first NIL agreement to a final professional contract. The goal is the same throughout: protect income while it is being earned, guard against the risks that can end it early, and convert peak-year earnings into stability that does not depend on staying healthy or staying signed.
Our Athlete & NIL Planning practice is led by Mark Lusti, a former Division I athlete who began his career on the protection side of the insurance business. He understands both the locker room and the paperwork — and works alongside the agents, CPAs, and attorneys already in an athlete’s corner rather than replacing them.
Request a ConsultationA Short Earning Window
Most athletic careers are measured in years, not decades. Every season has to do more financial work than it appears to.
Concentrated Risk
A single injury can end the income stream an entire financial plan is built on. That risk deserves to be insured, not assumed.
Sudden, Uneven Income
Money arrives in large and unpredictable amounts, often before the structure to manage it is in place.
How We Help Athletes
Six areas we address together, sequenced to match where you are in your career.
Asset Protection Strategies
Insurance-based strategies designed to help shield what you earn from litigation, creditors, and the financial predators that sudden wealth attracts.
Career Transition Planning
Build income and financial security that exist independent of your athletic career, so the end of competition is not the end of your earnings.
Wealth Preservation
Strategies built to protect what you have accumulated from market loss and to keep it intact through career changes and life after sport.
Disability & Life Insurance
Protect your most valuable asset — your ability to perform and earn — with coverage structured around your sport, your contract, and your stage of career.
Lifetime Retirement Income
Fixed index annuities and cash value life insurance designed to create income you cannot outlive, without exposing that income to market losses.
Generational Wealth Building
Estate and legacy strategies so that what you built benefits your family — and the people who supported you — for generations.
NIL Income Arrives Before the Playbook Does
College athletes can now earn real money from their name, image, and likeness. Very little about that income behaves like a normal paycheck.
NIL payments are generally made as independent contractor income rather than wages. In practice that means nothing is withheld, the athlete is responsible for setting money aside, and a large first year can create an obligation that is not obvious until it is due. Deal values also swing widely from season to season, and for most athletes this is the first significant income they have ever managed.
This is also the cheapest moment of an athlete’s life to put protection in place. Coverage is priced on age and health, so the terms available to a healthy twenty-year-old are typically better than anything offered later — and after an injury, some coverage may not be available at all.
- Plan for what is not withheld, and build reserves before income is spent
- Lock in disability and life coverage while young, healthy, and insurable
- Create assets that keep working whether or not the next deal arrives
- Separate money meant for today from money meant for life after sport
- Coordinate with your CPA, attorney, and agent — we work alongside them, not in place of them
Pienza Wealth Partners does not provide tax or legal advice. NIL rules and tax treatment vary by state, school, and conference and continue to change — please consult your CPA or attorney regarding your specific situation.
High School & Incoming College
Establish protection early and set expectations before the first agreement is signed.
Current NIL Earners
Organize inconsistent income, prepare for what is owed, and start converting deals into lasting assets.
Professional & Post-Career
Protect peak earnings, build income that outlasts the career, and structure a legacy for the next generation.
Athlete & NIL Planning FAQ
When Should an Athlete Start Planning?
As soon as there is income to protect. Disability and life coverage are priced on age and health, so an athlete in their late teens or early twenties can usually secure better terms than they will ever be offered again. Waiting for a bigger contract generally means paying more — and after an injury, some coverage may no longer be available at any price.
How Is NIL Income Different From a Paycheck?
NIL payments are generally paid as independent contractor income rather than wages, so taxes are typically not withheld and the athlete is responsible for setting money aside and making estimated payments. Income also varies significantly year to year. We help build reserves and protection around that reality and coordinate with your CPA — we do not provide tax or legal advice.
What Happens if My Career Ends Early?
That is precisely the scenario this planning exists for. Disability coverage is designed to protect your ability to earn if injury or illness ends your competitive career, and the income strategies put in place during your peak years are structured to keep working whether or not you play another season.
Related Services
Disability Income
Provides a portion of your income if you become unable to work due to a covered disability.
Learn moreRetirement Planning & Annuities
Build dependable income for the years after your career, with protection from market losses.
Learn moreTrust & Estate Planning
Direct what you have built to the people you choose, without unnecessary cost or delay.
Learn moreTalk to a Licensed Advisor About Athlete & NIL Planning.
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