After almost a year since whispers of TikTok being “banned” first emerged, the thrilling legal and political saga that has followed is now closer to its climax than ever before. In March of 2024, Congress passed a bill requiring TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to divest from the platform or face the app being banned in the United States. Of course, litigation ensued, and the case in which TikTok sought to block this measure of Congress was hurriedly argued before the Supreme Court this past Friday- only nine days before the ban is set to take place.

The Court brought forth many questions during oral argument, and a lot was up in the air, but one thing is evident: the Court is slightly leaning toward upholding the ban. With this reality, it’s time to admit it: TikTok could be creeping toward its final days.

Although TikTok wouldn’t literally “go black” on January 19th, the app would be removed from app stores and unable to be updated, potentially making the app glitchy and overrun with security issues.[1] Even though it's not a guarantee, the possibility of a world without TikTok should definitely be a very real consideration. There would no doubt be fallout across the board, but a ban could have drastic, unparalleled effects in one specific space: the college athletics industry.

In the current era of college athletics, NIL reigns supreme. Since 2021, when college athletes first gained the ability to be paid for their name, image, and likeness, the marketplace as a whole has grown from $917 million to an estimated $1.67 billion for 2024-25.[2] In order to take part in this thriving marketplace, athletes must focus on building their personal brand. Yes, performing well and making connections in their sport plays a part in brand building, but one avenue stands above all others: social media. Social media is THE dominant factor in allowing student-athletes to utilize their NIL, and social media following numbers are often the supreme criteria in determining whether an athlete receives sponsorships or not.

Even in the grand scheme of social media, one app sticks out. You guessed it: TikTok. No other site or app comes close to TikTok in terms of reach and influence, and it “accounts for as much as 80% of college athlete earnings from their name, image and likeness rights.”[3] It’s safe to say that without TikTok, hundreds of millions of dollars in NIL money would be left on the table every year.

Additionally, although a ban on TikTok would hurt every athlete who utilizes it, the ones hurt most may be those without an already established massive following. Figures like Livvy Dunne, Shedeur Sanders, and the Cavinder twins already have strong followings and million-dollar NIL deals, so it’s safe to say they could transition to other social media sites fairly easily. It’s the smaller figures, though-those that play non-revenue-generating sports, those with small following, and those in smaller programs-that would suffer tremendous setbacks from this ban, both financially and visibility-wise.

Mia Manson, a pole vaulter at the University of Michigan, is a prime example of what stands to be lost for these athletes if TikTok ceases to exist. She has built her TikTok following exponentially over the past few years, leading to her landing multiple big-time sponsorship deals. If the ban is upheld, Manson said her income will definitely be hit.[4] TikTok has also allowed her to showcase the behind-the-scenes world of a pole vaulter, something that wouldn’t have as much visibility without the app. Because of this, without TikTok, her event and sport overall could lose a lot of attention, which could lead to very real effects like fewer ticket sales and diminished TV viewership.

Another story is that of basketball player Brandon Dwyer. Although Dwyer plays for the smaller program of Florida Gulf Coast University, he has over 1.2 million followers on TikTok. He said that “losing TikTok would be like losing a job.” He said of the ban: “I am really hoping [it] doesn't happen. I may expand to other platforms but TikTok lets me connect with my fans, gain followers, and make some revenue."[5]

These are just a couple of athletes, among thousands of others, who have generated some sort of revenue because of their name, image, and likeness. For these athletes, along with those who have yet to “blow up,” a ban on TikTok would remove the majority of their content, following, and subsequent ability to attract sponsors and generate revenue—hurting the entire world of college athletics.

Of course, there is still so much up in the air surrounding this case. However, with a SCOTUS decision that could come any day now, all that’s left to do is wait and see.

Liam Sitz is a junior at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. He’s a political science student, football athlete, and sports information associate. He can be found on Twitter @LiamSitz and Linkedin as Liam Sitz.

References:

[1] https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/10/politics/takeaways-tiktok-supreme-court/index.html 

[2] https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2025-01-09/a-tiktok-ban-would-harm-college-sports-have-nots

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

[5] https://www.wptv.com/news/state/content-creators-in-florida-say-tiktok-ban-would-have-impacts-on-careers-finances