Tennessee will be one of several college basketball teams to participate in an innovative basketball tournament with NIL incentives over the next three years.

The Vols will participate in The Players Era Festival—a week-long event that will include financial eduction programs and NIL opportunities for players during Thanksgiving week at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas in 2025, 2026 and 2027, the school announced Thursday.

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Tennessee will join a growing field that currently includes 17 teams in Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Creighton, Gonzaga, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon, Rutgers, San Diego State, St. Josephs, Syracuse, St. John’s and Texas A&M.

More teams are expected to be added.

According to The Players Era Festival website, the event provided $9 million in NIL to players that participated in both engagement activities and competition in 2024.

The participants will make more than $50 million combined over three years.

"Tennessee is an exceptional program with one of the best coaches in college basketball. Adding them to the Players Era Men's Championship field for the next three seasons strengthens our field and elevates the unrivaled level of competition," Players ERA CEO Seth Berger said in a press release.

"Thanks to Coach Barnes for his support and commitment to Players Era. We are looking forward to seeing them compete for an SEC and NCAA title this year, and can't wait to see them in Las Vegas next November."

Tennessee has participated in a number of marquee regular season tournaments under Rick Barnes, including the Maui Invitational and the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas.

The Players Era Festival, which debuted last fall, offers a new kind of tournament in the NIL era.

In addition to the financial incentives, it combines international style-group play with the goal of providing a postseason environment.

"Our program is thrilled to join the Players Era Men's Championship field. This is a tremendous event featuring some of the very best teams in the sport, at a destination location," Tennessee head coach Barnes said. "We always try to test ourselves during non-conference play and it is hard to find a better way to do that than through this tournament. It will help prepare us for the rigors of SEC competition and will serve as an excellent experience for our student-athletes."

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