Olivia Dunne, the Louisiana State University gymnast, social media influencer, and Sports Illustrated cowl woman, has launched a fund to assist different ladies athletes safe title, picture and licensing (NIL) cash.
The Livvy Fund will initially present LSU feminine athletes with unique business suggestions and connections Dunne has constructed. Dunne is taken into account by many to be the highest-paid feminine athlete within the nation, incomes a seven-figure earnings by way of NIL offers.
“I really just hope that [The Livvy Fund] is the first of many,” Dunne advised SI Swimsuit. “I actually hope to get as many ladies pupil athletes on board as I can. I wish to proceed to raise ladies’s sports activities as a complete as a result of they actually deserve the identical publicity as the lads’s.
“We do equal work, we put in equal time in our facilities every day and in school. So, I feel like it would be right for this to be equal.”
Dunne is heading into her senior 12 months at Louisiana State University as a member of the varsity’s gymnastics workforce. She has greater than 4 million Instagram followers and seven.6 million acolytes on TikTook, which means her posts are seen tens of millions of instances.
That has made her the highest feminine social media influencer, price an estimated $3.3 million and climbing. She revealed earlier this month that she has been paid greater than $500,000 for a single social media publish.
Dunne and her fellow athletes and influencers are the beneficiaries of a 2021 Supreme Court ruling that indicated the NCAA couldn’t cease athletes from capitalizing on their names, photographs and licensing. That has remodeled so-called “amateur” sports activities and allowed its stars to capitalize on their success for the primary time.
Dunne, 20, is ready to embark on her senior 12 months at LSU subsequent month.
She stated that she determined to start out the Livvy Fund when she found that 66% of NIL funding for LSU athletes goes to male athletes.
“The collectives mostly go to the men’s sports here at LSU, and I just want to fight for equal NIL opportunities,” she stated. “It’s crucial to assist educate different pupil athletes right here at LSU on how one can be a savvy businesswoman and how one can associate with manufacturers.
“Over the past two years, I’ve learned so much from these brands. So, I just want to help educate others and help give equal opportunities.”
Dunne indicated she hopes to broaden the Livvy Fund to different school campuses sooner or later.
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