Football University

What Football University does

Football University (FBU) is a private, Naples, FL-headquartered youth sports events company founded in 2007 and owned by 3 Step Sports LLC. FBU operates as the original and longest-running national football camp and showcase series in the United States, delivering position-specific training, combine testing, tournaments, and All-American Bowl games to middle school and high school student-athletes. The company runs more than 50 events per year, including 20 Regional Camps and 5 College Camps across 18+ U.S. cities (February-June), 10 Boys 7v7 regional tournaments for 10u/12u/14u age divisions, 5 Girls Flag regional events with a Top 100 invitational, the Top Gun Showcase (the flagship 1,500+ athlete invitational at Paradise Coast Sports Complex in Naples, FL), the National Championship, the National Combine, and the 7th Grade, Freshman, and Navy All-American Bowls. Supporting technology includes the PlayerFirst authentication platform (single login across 150+ youth sports organizations under 3 Step Sports) and UC Verified combine testing that produces official athlete profiles with 40-yard dash, L-Drill, vertical jump, height/weight, and headshot data for recruiting visibility.

Revenue is generated primarily through event registrations (Regional Camps at $169/athlete, Girls Flag at $25/player, 7v7 team entry at $750/team), stay-to-play hotel referral revenue via Team Travel Source, spectator and gate revenue at marquee events (particularly Top Gun Showcase), and sponsorship arrangements with Under Armour (multi-year through 2033), ESPN, Rivals, On3, 247Sports, NCSA, and historical partners including adidas, Gatorade, Soldier Sports, and NBC Sports. Distribution is direct-to-consumer via online registration portals, supplemented by coach-driven nomination portals feeding elite events. Customer segments span middle school football players, high school football players, high school girls flag football athletes, and youth 7v7 teams.

The company is led by Managing Partners Steve Quinn (with FBU since approximately 2012 in senior capacity, 20+ years in middle school football) and Erik Richards (25+ years in youth and high school football, President of the Gwinnett Football League, National Scouting Director for the Navy All-American Bowl), supported by eight functional directors covering sales/marketing, registration, administration, 7v7 operations, player development, and on-field logistics/logistics. FBU operates as a subsidiary asset within the broader 3 Step Sports LLC portfolio of 150+ youth sports organizations.

Name

Football University

Legal name

Football University

Website

https://footballuniversity.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Football University (FBU) is a private youth football events company founded in 2007 that runs camps, combine testing, tournaments, and All-American Bowl games for middle and high school athletes across 18+ U.S. cities, capped by its flagship Top Gun Showcase in Naples, FL. It is owned by 3 Step Sports LLC.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Football Training & Showcase Events

NAICS

Sports and Recreation Instruction (611620), Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (713940), Spectator Sports (71121)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

College Recruiting & Scholarship Advisory / Athlete Placement (HSADAEAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Athlete Testing & Combine Prep (metrics, scouting prep) (HSADAEAK), Sports Combine, Tryout & Showcase Programs (MPAKAJAM), Collegiate & Scholastic Tournament Organizers (MPAKADAG), Athletic Recruitment & NCAA/NAIA Eligibility Counseling (EDANAEAM)

Keywords

• Youth football camps
• Football showcase events
• Combine testing services
• Flag football tournaments
• All-American football games

Headquarters

HQ city

Morristown

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Individual Camp Registration: Athletes pay $169 to attend FBU Regional Camps. Includes official camp apparel, combine testing, player ratings, and eligibility for national event invites.
2. Girls Flag Registration: Individual players pay $25 to participate in regional Girls Flag events. Includes UA jersey and gloves. Teams compete in regional events leading to national championship.
3. 7v7 Team Registration: Teams pay $750 per team to enter 7v7 regional tournaments. Teams compete across 10 regional events for national championship qualification.
4. Top Gun Showcase Tickets: Revenue from spectator attendance at the annual Top Gun Showcase event held in Naples, FL featuring 1500+ elite student-athletes.
5. Stay-to-Play Hotel Partnership: Partnership with Team Travel Source for mandatory hotel bookings during Top Gun Showcase generates referral revenue through discounted hotel rates.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Football University runs position-specific football training camps, competitive 7v7 tournaments, girls flag football events, and invitational All-American showcase games for middle school and high school student-athletes. Each event delivers NFL/NCAA-level coaching instruction, combine testing with UC Verified metrics, and a recruiting-exposure pathway that culminates in the annual Top Gun Showcase at Paradise Coast Sports Complex in Naples, Florida. The company monetizes through per-athlete, per-player, and per-team registration fees, sponsorships, and stay-to-play hotel referral revenue.

Product overview

Football University operates as a multi-event football development and exposure platform, offering a portfolio of camps, showcases, tournaments, and All-American games for middle school and high school athletes. The core product lineup centers on the FBU Top Gun Showcase (the flagship invitational event in Naples, FL), supported by FBU Regional Camps (position-specific training with combine testing), FBU 7v7 Tournament (boys 7-on-7 competition), FBU Girls Flag (competitive flag football for high school girls), and multiple All-American Bowl games (FBU 7th Grade, FBU Freshman, and Navy All-American Bowl). Additional offerings include the National Combine, FBU National Championship tournament, and FBU Futures Showcase. Supplementary services include UC Report/UCVerified (player profile and combine verification) and the PlayerFirst authentication platform for registration and account management. The company runs over 50 events annually across 20+ regional camp locations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FBU Top Gun Showcase

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100,000 student-athletes trained since 2007 (updated to 150,000+ on 2026 camp page)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Under ArmourcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerUnder Armour provides official apparel for FBU events including camp wear, showcase jerseys, and gloves for Girls Flag participants. UA branding appears on Top Gun Showcase materials and Girls Flag Top 100 Event. FBU athletes receive UA Next Camp invites as part of national exposure pathway (2027-2033).
• 247 SportscoreGTM or Marketing Partner247Sports provides on-site representation and recruiting coverage at Top Gun Showcase and other FBU events. Part of national media partnership delivering exposure opportunities to FBU athletes.
• RivalscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerRivals provides on-site recruiting coverage and media representation at FBU Top Gun Showcase. Athletes receive exposure through Rivals platform as part of national media partnership.
• On3coreGTM or Marketing PartnerOn3 provides on-site recruiting coverage and media representation at FBU Top Gun Showcase. Part of national media partnership delivering recruiting visibility for elite FBU athletes.
• NCSAminorGTM or Marketing PartnerNCSA (Next College Student Athlete) provides recruiting services and on-site representation at FBU events. Partnership provides college recruiting resources for FBU athlete families.
• UC Verified (UC Report)coreTechnology or IntegrationUC Verified provides official combine testing and the UC Report profile system for FBU Regional Camps. Athletes receive verified combine metrics including 40-yard dash, L-Drill, vertical jump, height, and weight. UC Report powers recruiting visibility through verified athlete data.
• PlayerFirstcoreTechnology or IntegrationPlayerFirst Technology provides single login access across 150+ youth sport organizations and event providers. FBU uses PlayerFirst platform for athlete account management, waiver completion, and registration across all programs.
• Team Travel SourcecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTeam Travel Source is the official housing partner for the 2026 FBU Top Gun Showcase. Handles stay-to-play hotel bookings at discounted rates for families attending the event. Contact: [email protected] / 502-354-9103.
• Paradise Coast Sports ComplexcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner$100 million state-of-the-art sports complex in Naples serves as the permanent home venue for FBU Top Gun Showcase, 7v7 National Championships, and Girls Flag National Championships. FBU engineered new sponsorship agreements including Collier County partnership for this venue.
• Battle SportsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBattle Sports provides official camp apparel for FBU events including the FBU Freshman All-American Bowl Powered By Battle. Apparel partnership provides athlete gear for showcase events.
• ESPNcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerESPN provides national media coverage for FBU Girls Flag Top 100 Event. Media partnership delivers recruiting visibility and national exposure for top female flag football athletes.
• 3 Step Sports LLCcoreOthers3 Step Sports LLC is the parent company of Football University. FBU website copyright indicates 2026 3 Step Sports LLC ownership. Privacy Policy and Terms of Use reference threestep.com domain.
• Navy All-American BowlcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFBU partners with Navy All-American Bowl for elite recruiting event. Erik Richards serves as National Scouting Director for Navy All-American Bowl. Athletes can earn invites to Navy All-American Bowl through FBU camp performance (2027-2028).
• USA Football Women's National TeamcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHead Coach Saaid Mortazavi of USA Football's Women's National Team leads the 2026 FBU Girls Flag Top 100 Event. Provides elite coaching instruction including four on-field practice sessions for top 100 selected athletes.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• IMG Academy: IMG Academy is the largest multi-sport youth training and showcase operator globally, offering elite coaching, combine testing, and national exposure across multiple sports — directly comparable to FBU on the athlete-development and exposure value proposition, just at a much larger, multi-sport scale.
• USA Football: USA Football is the national governing body for amateur football in the U.S. and runs sanctioned events including the Women's National Flag Team; FBU partners with its Women's National Team Head Coach for Girls Flag — making it both a partner and a structural peer in governing/standard-setting youth football programming.
• Varsity Brands (U.S. Cheer / All-Net): Varsity Brands operates event-driven youth sports competitions at scale; while cheer/dance-focused, its model of multi-age regional events culminating in national championships in a single venue is structurally analogous to FBU's 7v7 and Girls Flag national tournament model.

Direct peers

• Adidas 7-on-7: Adidas 7-on-7 is a national 7v7 football tournament series with apparel sponsorship analogous to FBU's Under Armour–backed 7v7 product; directly comparable in age divisions, regional structure, and national-championship format.
• U.S. Army All-American Bowl: The U.S. Army All-American Bowl is a long-running high school All-American football game with a similar recruit-exposure value proposition to the Navy All-American Bowl and FBU All-American games; directly comparable showcase-bowl peer in the elite-youth-football ecosystem.
• Rivals Camp Series: Rivals operates combine-style football camps and recruiting coverage nationwide and is a FBU media partner, but also runs its own invitation-only camp circuit that competes for the same elite high school football athletes.
• Under Armour All-America Game: Under Armour's All-America Game is the apparel-brand-backed counterpart to the Navy All-American Bowl that FBU feeds; FBU even receives UA Next Camp invites (2027–2033) as part of that integration — a clear peer in the youth football exposure market.
• Nike / The Opening: Nike's The Opening is a premier football camp + combine + 7v7 circuit that produces invite lists to marquee events like the All-American Bowl — the single closest direct competitor to FBU's camp-to-showcase-to-bowl pipeline in the high school football space.

Others

• American Football Coaches Association (AFCA): AFCA is the head-coach professional association that runs coaching conventions and youth-level recognition events; comparable in structure as a youth-football ecosystem organizer rather than a direct camp competitor, and a possible upstream channel for FBU coach pipeline.

Emerging players

• National Collegiate Scouting Association (NCSA): NCSA is a college athletic recruiting platform that provides recruiting services and on-site representation at FBU events. It competes indirectly by offering recruiting visibility that complements or substitutes for showcase participation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/FBUcamp
• Facebookfacebook.com/FootballUniversity
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/football-university

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Football University