Can high school athletes in New York do NIL deals?

Yes, on one condition: no school connection. New York's rule (NYSPHSAA Handbook, Bylaw 2, amended October 2021) follows the same model as California - a student may participate in commercial endorsements provided there is no school team, school, Section, or NYSPHSAA affiliation. What forfeits amateur status is capitalizing on athletic fame IN CONNECTION WITH the school: appearing in a school uniform or using school, Section, or NYSPHSAA marks in the endorsement. There is no restricted-category list, no routine disclosure requirement, and no agent provision - the word 'agent' does not appear in the 169-page handbook.

New York High School NIL Rules (NYSPHSAA)

What's allowed

Commercial endorsements with NO school team, school, Section, or NYSPHSAA affiliation

What's prohibited

Capitalizing on athletic fame by receiving money, compensation, endorsements or gifts of monetary value in affiliation or connection with the student's school team, school, Section or NYSPHSAA
Appearing in school uniform in the endorsement
Using school, Section, or NYSPHSAA marks or logos

What the document is silent on

Silence is not permission and not prohibition — the governing document simply does not address these. We list them because most summaries wrongly convert silence into "no".

parental consent ('parent', 'consent', 'co-sign' appear nowhere in the NIL provisions)
agent representation (zero hits in the entire handbook)
restricted product categories
collectives

Parental consent, disclosure & representation

Parental consent required

Not addressed

Disclosure required

No

School marks allowed

No

Agent / representation addressed

Not addressed

Disclosure runs to: None for a compliant deal. Violations 'shall be reported to the League and Section.'

State-law status

No enacted New York statute governs HS-level NIL - the state's 2021 NIL law is college-only. No conflict found.

Who sets this rule

New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) sets New York's high school eligibility rules. High school NIL is governed by private association bylaws — not federal law, and in most states not statute — which is why the answer differs state to state and can change in a single handbook cycle.

Sources

NYSPHSAA Handbook, Bylaw 2 (Amateur) - amended Oct. 2021 (August 1, 2025)
This provision is not intended to restrict the right of any student to participate in a commercial endorsement provided there is no school team, school, Section or NYSPHSAA affiliation.

Governing text effective October 20, 2021.

Change history

July 19, 2026 — Initial publication from primary-source research pass (adversarially verified; see citations).

Not legal advice. This page documents publicly available rules and is not legal advice. Rules change, and associations do not always announce changes. Confirm anything you rely on with the governing association, your school compliance office, or your own counsel before acting.

Spot an error? Tell us and cite the source — we re-check the primary source before changing anything, and record what changed.