Tom Brady has agreed endorsement deals with a host of college athletes ahead of the launch of the National Football League (NFL) star’s own sportswear brand in January 2022.

Capitalising on the changing name, image and likeness (NIL) landscape in college sports, the ‘Brady’ sportswear brand has signed up Cade McNamara, the quarterback at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers star’s alma mater Michigan. Other college football players to have been snapped up include UCLA’s Patrick Zahraj, Coastal Carolina’s Grayson McCall, Georgia’s Bulldogs’ George Pickens, and Shedeur Sanders, the son of NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders.

Outside of football, the new brand has agreed deals with Michigan tennis player Andrew Fenty, Boston College’s ice hockey prospect Jack St. Ivan, as well as college basketball stars Julian Reese (Maryland) and Jermaine Samuels Jr (Villanova).

Tom Brady, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Alex Morgan join US$75m Alt funding round

At the pro level, Henry Davis, who was taken first overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2021 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft, was also signed on to the brand’s inaugural cohort.

The Brady brand was co-founded by the NFL star and entrepreneur Jens Grede, with the apparel co-designed by Dao-Yi Chow. It will officially launch on 12th January via the brand’s direct-to-consumer platform, with expanded distribution in Nordstrom’s physical and ecommerce stores soon after.

“Having these ten athletes represent our first Brady campaign is really special,” said Brady.

“They are hardworking and driven players in the early stages of their careers and each one of them embodies the spirit and ethos in which our brand was founded.”