Every fall someone in the tailgate lot asks the same question: if I want to help Penn State athletes, where should my money go? It depends on what you want your dollars to do. Here's how the main options compare as of fall 2026, and what actually happens to the money once it leaves your hands.
The short version
| Option | Who controls the money | What it pays for | Usually tax-deductible? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gift to the university's athletics fund | Penn State Athletics | Scholarships, facilities, operations and the department budget that now funds revenue sharing | Often, at least in part. Payments for ticket or seating priority are not. |
| Contribution to an NIL collective | An independent organization | NIL deals with athletes for marketing work, plus the group's overhead | Usually not |
| Direct business deal with an athlete | Your business | A specific job: an appearance, a post, a clinic | It's not a gift. Ask your accountant how to treat it. |
| Tickets and licensed merchandise | The university and its licensees | Department revenue, plus royalties when a product uses an athlete's NIL | No |
The details matter, so here's each one in plain English.
Where a gift to the university goes
When you give to Penn State Athletics through the university's official giving program, the Nittany Lion Club, the money goes to the athletic department. Traditionally that has meant scholarships, facilities and day-to-day operations. Since the House settlement, the department's budget also has to cover revenue sharing, the direct payments schools can now make to athletes. When Penn State committed to sharing revenue up to the cap for 2025-26, athletic director Pat Kraft pointed to department funds, including donor-supported ones, as part of how it would pay for it.
On taxes: gifts to the university are generally deductible to the extent they exceed the value of any benefits you get back. The big exception is seating. Since 2018, payments that give you the right to buy tickets haven't been deductible at all. If a gift is tied to seat location or ticket priority, talk to a tax professional before you assume anything.
The trade-off is control. You can often designate a sport or a fund, but you can't direct money to a specific athlete. That's by design.
Where collective money goes
A collective is an independent group, usually funded by boosters, fans and businesses, that pays athletes for NIL work. From 2021 through mid-2025, collectives were the main way serious money reached athletes at most big programs, through appearance deals, social campaigns, charity work and, at some schools, steady monthly payments in exchange for deliverables.
The House settlement changed the rules for them. Collectives count as "associated entities," so their deals get the closest review in NIL Go, the College Sports Commission's clearinghouse. After a strict first pass in July 2025, the CSC said collective deals can be cleared when the athlete is promoting goods or services sold to the public for profit, at a reasonable rate. What it won't clear is a deal that's really just a pipeline for booster money.
That pushed collectives to change how they work. Some now sell products or memberships and pay athletes to promote them. Some act more like marketing agencies, matching athletes with sponsors. Others have scaled back or lined up more closely with their school's own NIL efforts. The money hasn't disappeared: the CSC reported clearing more than $227 million in deals in July and August 2026, and about $188.6 million of that involved associated entities.
Two things to know before you contribute. First, collectives have overhead, including legal, accounting, content and staff, so ask what share of each dollar reaches athletes. Second, contributions are usually not tax-deductible. In 2023 the IRS's chief counsel said many collectives organized as charities don't qualify, because their main purpose is paying individual athletes rather than serving a charitable cause.
Revenue sharing: the money you don't send directly
Revenue sharing is the biggest new pot, and fans fund it only indirectly, through tickets, media deals, sponsorships and gifts to the department. In the first year, 307 schools shared about $1.77 billion with roughly 35,000 athletes, according to College Sports Commission figures reported in early October. Only 68 schools hit the $20.5 million cap or came within 5 percent of it. The cap is roughly $21.5 million for 2026-27.
The cap applies to what the school pays, including some scholarship and academic-award spending within set limits. Third-party NIL from outside groups doesn't count against it, which is why collectives and local businesses still matter.
For Olympic sports, the math is tighter. When most of a school's pool goes to football and basketball, sports like wrestling, volleyball and gymnastics lean harder on scholarships and outside NIL. That's one reason fans of those programs often ask about designating gifts by sport. Ask the athletic department, or any group you're considering, how sport-designated money is actually handled.
Three myths worth clearing up
"Revenue sharing means the school doesn't need donors anymore."
If anything, the opposite. Revenue sharing is a new expense that sits on top of scholarships, coaching salaries, travel and facilities. Many athletic departments have turned to donors and new revenue streams to help cover it.
"Giving to a collective is basically giving to the team."
Not quite. A collective is a separate organization with its own leadership and its own costs. Some work closely with their school's athletic department, and some don't. Your money goes where that group decides, within the CSC's rules.
"If I give more, my favorite player gets paid more."
Not directly, and that's on purpose. Gifts to the university can't be steered to an individual athlete, and collective payments have to be tied to real NIL work at a reasonable rate. Money that simply follows a fan's favorite player starts to look a lot like pay-for-play.
Questions to ask before you give anywhere
- Who runs it, and who sits on its board?
- Is it a registered charity? If it says so, ask for proof of its IRS status.
- What share of each dollar reaches athletes?
- Do athlete deals go through NIL Go?
- Can you designate a sport, and how is money split within a team?
- What do athletes actually do in return?
- Does it call itself "official"? If so, does the athletic department say the same?
A legitimate group should be able to answer all of these without dodging.
Helping without writing a check
Money isn't the only lever. Showing up, buying licensed gear, sharing athletes' posts and hiring them for real work all add up. We've put sport-specific guides together for football and wrestling. If you're new to the topic, start with What Is NIL? A Guide for Penn State Fans, and if you're a business owner, read what NIL deals Penn State athletes can sign.
The bottom line
A gift to the university is broad, long-term support for Penn State Athletics, and it may carry a tax deduction. A vetted collective or a direct business deal ties your money to specific NIL work. Whatever you choose, know where the money goes before it leaves your account.