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On March 9, 2026, Enthusiast Sports & Entertainment (ES&E) and Athletes.org unveiled the Video Game Advisory Committee (VGAC), an initiative designed to bring college competitors into conversations that affect their portrayal and rights in sports titles. The VGAC is framed as an ongoing, structured forum where current and former players, coaches, and industry practitioners can learn about the commercial, legal, and creative forces behind sports video games. The founding goal is straightforward: ensure that college athletes are educated, listened to, and included early in product development rather than treated as an afterthought.
The program’s first phase centers on men’s and women’s college basketball, with plans to broaden the committee’s scope to additional sports over time. ES&E and Athletes.org emphasize that the VGAC is not purely advisory in name; it is intended to create actionable input for developers and publishers on sensitive topics such as the use of athlete likenesses and compensation frameworks. By combining practical briefings with direct dialogue, the committee aims to equip athletes with knowledge about how the industry operates and how decisions that affect their name, image and likeness are made.
Why this committee matters
The college sports and NIL landscape has been evolving rapidly, and past releases of collegiate sports games exposed gaps when athletes were not engaged in decision-making. The VGAC seeks to address those gaps by providing education about contracts, licensing models, and development processes, while also creating channels for athlete feedback. The committee’s work is intended to promote transparent negotiation and fair treatment so that outcomes benefit players, creators, and fans. By fostering informed participation, the initiative hopes to reduce disputes over representation, compensation, and fair market value.
Who is involved
The VGAC brings together a mix of current student-athletes, former players, coaches, and industry voices. Current athletes serving on the committee include Lauren Betts (UCLA), Jaloni Cambridge (Ohio State), Grace VanSlooten (Michigan State), Braden Smith (Purdue), Seth Trimble (North Carolina), and Ramon Walker (Houston). Former athletes and coaches participating are Kelly Rae Finley (Women’s Coach Florida), Pat Kelsey (Men’s Coach Louisville), Armando Bacot (former UNC player), and Sedona Prince (former TCU player). Industry expertise is provided by contributors such as Jay Bilas (ESPN), Brandon Copeland (Athletes.org), and Wesley Haynes (ES&E). Together they form a cross-functional group intended to bridge athlete experience with publisher practice.
Topics under review
Committee discussions have already touched on several technical and policy areas: athlete likenesses, group and active use licensing, gender equity, gameplay authenticity, and motion capture. These are being treated as core domains where athlete insight can directly influence how features are implemented and how compensation or consent frameworks are structured. ES&E and Athletes.org are facilitating informational sessions so committee members gain grounding in legal concepts and industry norms, while also providing a platform to raise athlete-centered concerns.
How the committee will engage with publishers
Early engagement has already started: leading publisher 2K shared materials with the VGAC and asked for feedback, sparking practical conversations. The committee’s design creates repeatable touchpoints where publishers can present proposals and receive athlete-informed critique before implementation. This model is meant to replace one-off post-release complaints with an iterative process that balances creative goals and athlete protections. The VGAC will act as a conduit for both education—so athletes understand contract terms and industry constraints—and influence—so athletes’ perspectives reshape product decisions.
Next steps and long-term intent
While the initial focus is collegiate basketball, the organizers anticipate expanding into other sports and building a sustained curriculum that empowers athletes year-round. The initiative also intends to surface common concerns to inform better licensing products and market practices. ES&E and Athletes.org described the VGAC as a step toward transparency and accountability within the video game ecosystem, with the objective of ensuring college athletes participate meaningfully in conversations that affect their professional and personal rights.
For media or partnership inquiries, contacts remain [email protected] and [email protected]. About the partners: Enthusiast Sports & Entertainment (ES&E) focuses on connecting brands, athletes, and rights-holders through group licensing and NIL programs and brings leadership experience across major players’ associations. Athletes.org, billed as “The Players Association for College Athletes,” is a voluntary membership organization that represents more than 5,200 current and former college athletes and exists to educate and organize athletes in the evolving college sports landscape.