Florida basketball is already beefing up its future schedule as the program announced on Tuesday, Aug. 19, that it has entered a multi-year agreement to participate in the Player’s Era Men’s Championship field starting in the 2026-27 season.
“The Players Era Men’s Championship has already become one of the elite multi-team events in a short time, and we’re excited to be part of that growth and innovation,” said Florida head coach Todd Golden in a press release. “With the field assembled, Players Era will be a central piece of our nonconference schedule for the next several years.”
The Players Era Festival, a Las Vegas-based NIL event that pays millions to college basketball players, debuted last season with just eight teams. The field expanded to 18 teams for this upcoming year and will rise to 32 teams by 2026.
The tournament initially marketed itself with $1 million NIL payouts for all participating schools. This year’s upcoming tournament features over $20 million in guaranteed NIL activities for participating teams, but the NIL activities will take place during ancillary events that are separate from the games.
The Gators’ 2026 field is likely to feature every team competing in this year’s event, which includes Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Creighton, Gonzaga, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon, Rutgers, San Diego State, St. Joseph’s, St. John’s, Tennessee, Syracuse and UNLV.
This year’s tournament will take place Thanksgiving week at a variety of locations in Las Vegas, with every game aired by TNT Sports on TNT, truTV and HBO Max.
Reach Florida Gators writer Andrew Abadie at aabadie@gannett.com or on X (formerly Twitter) at @AndrewAbadie. You can also find him on Facebook at Andrew Abadie Sports Reporter or on Instagram @andrewabadie_sports.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida basketball to join Players Era Men’s Championship tournament with multi-year agreement
Reporting by Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
