Injury safety answer provides insurance for schools’ funds to high athletes and entry to participant danger insights because the identify, picture and likeness era transforms sports
SCHAUMBURG, Ill. and MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — In a brand new era for college sports, Zurich North America and Players Health, a number one supplier of athlete security and insurance options, have teamed as much as introduce a first-of-its-kind Critical Injury Protection Insurance answer for schools, universities, collectives and their scholar athletes who obtain identify, picture and likeness (NIL) funds. The new insurance protects these establishments’ monetary investments in high student-athletes within the occasion the athlete suffers a season-disrupting injury.
Players Health + Zurich offer injury insurance for NIL era of college sports
The Critical Injury Protection Insurance coverage gives cowl to the college or collective for NIL contract funds made or owed to an athlete who suffers an injury in official play, follow or coaching that causes them to overlook a good portion of the season (sometimes 40% or extra). As the NIL house continues to evolve quickly, the surplus-lines protection is customizable and tailor-made to the worth of NIL contracts. Another iteration of the providing can present protection to athletes for potential loss of future NIL-related earnings as a consequence of injury.
The coverage, underwritten by Zurich, is distributed completely via Players Health, which additionally makes it accessible via a not too long ago introduced integration with Teamworks, the Operating System for Sports.™ Teamworks gives college athletics software program utilized by 99% of Division I athletic departments and greater than 6,500 elite sports groups globally.
Beyond insurance, the Zurich-Players Health collaboration provides injury and sports danger insights drawn from Players Health’s database, one of the biggest of its type. The Minneapolis-based firm was based over a decade in the past by a former college soccer participant to assist and improve athlete security. His crew, largely composed of former college {and professional} athletes, has tracked injury knowledge for the reason that firm’s inception. They’ve created an injury likelihood mannequin and used their knowledge to assist advise organizations throughout the nation on the best way to higher assist athlete security and mitigate dangers.
“Every major change in college athletics should start with one question: does this make the game safer and more sustainable for athletes? This partnership allows us to answer ‘yes’ in a tangible way,” mentioned Players Health founder and CEO Tyrre Burks, who performed soccer for Winona State University and the Canadian Football League earlier than retiring as a consequence of accidents. “I started Players Health to create the safest and most accessible environment possible for athletes to play the sport they love. As Players Health has grown, we’re excited to take this next step with Zurich. Working with a leading commercial insurance provider to fulfill an emerging need is a force multiplier that helps us protect more organizations and athletes as the playing field gets more complex.”
The coverage debuted for college soccer season and is now being marketed for males’s and girls’s college basketball, in addition to the college soccer 2026 switch portal. It is an element of Zurich’s and Players Health’s broader methods to assist establishments via the professionalization of collegiate athletics, to steer the market in NIL-related monetary safety and to assist wholesome participation in play.
“The Zurich-Players Health NIL offering is about much more than insurance,” mentioned Marty Banaszek, Head of Group Accident at Zurich North America, who along with Players Health started creating this novel answer over a 12 months in the past. “It’s a relationship born out of Players Health’s broader mission to support athlete safety and Zurich’s commitment to help organizations and individuals to meet tomorrow prepared.”
Education is an element of the worth, particularly because the NIL transition is in its infancy and continues to evolve. Players Health leaders have deep expertise and relationships with college athletic departments and perceive the wants of patrons and nuances of NIL. Zurich has personalized Accident & Health merchandise for employers, instructional establishments and affinity teams for over 20 years.
“Athletic directors and coaching staffs are looking for smarter ways to manage risks to athletes and protect their programs,” mentioned Tate Gillespie, VP of collegiate and NIL technique at Players Health and beforehand Director of NIL Strategy on the University of Kansas. “This policy gives them a competitive edge with the protection and information needed to manage budgets and make confident decisions.”
Zurich Global Head of Accident & Health Jim Villa praised Players Health and innovation on this area. “Zurich is proud to be a first mover with Players Health, not just with insurance but with a holistic, comprehensive protection offering for colleges and athletes,” he mentioned. “Together we’re delivering an inventive, consultative solution for an exciting new era of college sports, which bring joy to so many.”
About Players Health Players Health gives insurance safety and risk-management options for youth, newbie, health, and collegiate sports nationwide. Protecting greater than 5.5 million athletes throughout 40,000 packages, Players Health delivers insurance protection, athlete security schooling and compliance assets that assist create safer environments and cut back danger. Guided by the assumption that each athlete deserves a secure place to play, Players Health works to strengthen security requirements throughout the sports ecosystem. Learn extra at www.playershealth.com.
About Zurich North America Zurich North America delivers insurance and danger administration providers to assist make companies and folks extra resilient. As one of the biggest suppliers of insurance options and providers to companies and people, Zurich serves mid-sized and enormous companies, together with over 90% of the Fortune 500. It employs 10,000 individuals within the United States and Canada. Recognized by Fortune as one of the “World’s Most Admired Companies,” Zurich has earned its status via dedication and excellence.
Zurich North America is an element of Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich), a number one world multi-line insurer based over 150 years in the past. Zurich serves over 75 million prospects in additional than 200 nations and territories, delivering industry-leading whole shareholder returns.
Reflecting its goal to “create a brighter future together,” Zurich provides safety providers that transcend conventional insurance, to assist its prospects in constructing resilience. Since 2020, the Zurich Forest mission has supported reforestation and biodiversity restoration in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest.
The Group has greater than 63,000 workers and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd (ZURN), is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange and has a degree I American Depositary Receipt (ZURVY) program, which is traded over-the-counter on OTCQX. Further data is accessible at https://www.zurich.com/ and https://www.zurichna.com/.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.
