Estimated NIL Spend
$2M
2025–26 est.
Top Sport
Men's Basketball
$1.5M
UC Irvine is a Big West program without football.
Men's basketball receives the primary NIL investment. The Irvine/Orange County, California market gives UCI athletes exceptional commercial NIL access from one of the nation's wealthiest communities and tech industry hubs.
Orange County wealth creates excellent commercial NIL
Baseball, soccer, track, volleyball, swimming, water polo, tennis, golf
Hover any row for total spend & share of program budget.
UC Irvine ranks #231 nationally in estimated NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) spending for the 2025–26 athletic year, with a combined budget of $2M across all sports. As a Lower-Tier program in the Big West, UC Irvinecompetes with the nation's top revenue-sharing and collective-funded programs to attract and retain top recruits, transfer-portal talent, and returning starters.
The Sideline's NIL Tracker compiles UC Irvine's reported NIL figures from publicly disclosed contracts, collective funding announcements, athletic department reporting, and cross-referenced industry sources. Numbers reflect estimates of UC Irvine's 2026 NIL budget allocations including football, men's basketball, women's basketball, baseball, softball, and Olympic sports where applicable. Men's Basketball represents the largest single-sport allocation at $1.5M.
NIL spending at UC Irvine continues to evolve following the House v. NCAA settlement, which permits direct revenue sharing with student-athletes starting in the 2025–26 academic year. UC Irvine's figures include both the school's revenue-share allocation and third-party collective deals from boosters and alumni networks. For broader context, view our complete NIL Tracker rankings or compare UC Irvine directly to other programs on the NIL Compare tool.
UC Irvine is estimated to spend $2M on NIL in the 2025–26 athletic year, including revenue-sharing allocations and third-party collective deals. This ranks #231 nationally among Division I programs.
UC Irvine competes in the Big West at the Lower-Tier level.
Men's Basketball is UC Irvine's top NIL-funded sport with approximately $1.5M in estimated 2026 spending.
UC Irvine's $2M NIL budget can be compared against every Big West program and all 357 Division I schools on The Sideline's NIL Tracker.
UC Irvine's NIL budget combines two sources: the school's direct revenue-share allocation (capped at roughly $20.5M industry-wide following the House settlement) and third-party collective deals funded by boosters, alumni, and corporate sponsors.
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Kirby Smart has beaten Nick Saban's Alabama in three of their meetings since Smart was hired at Georgia. Smart was Saban's defensive coordinator for 7 years. The student has beaten the teacher three times.