What Learfield Licensing Partners does

Learfield Licensing Partners operates the Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), the licensing division of Learfield, and is described as the nation's leading collegiate licensing and marketing platform. The firm connects more than 185 million college fans to officially-licensed merchandise and brand experiences on behalf of colleges, universities, and athletic departments, and has extended its footprint into K-12 schools and nonprofit sectors via its subsidiary Licensing Partners International (LPI). Its service portfolio spans brand management strategies, national brand platforms, retail development and marketing, brand protection (including anti-counterfeit enforcement), and corporate responsibility programming, supported by an integrated tooling stack comprising Brand Manager 360, Logos on Demand (via J. Patton), CORE81, License Search, and the Get Licensed platform.

The business model is a licensing royalty engine: CLC contracts with educational institutions and rights holders, then licenses those brands to manufacturers and retailers in exchange for royalties on officially-licensed merchandise. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and engagement appears quote-based through institutional partnerships. The go-to-market motion is enterprise field sales, targeting college, university, and athletic department decision-makers, complemented by self-serve tooling for licensees and brand managers and consumer-facing License Search functionality. Headcount is in the 101-250 range, and operations are headquartered at 1075 Peachtree Street in Atlanta, GA, serving a North American market. The firm is privately held as a Learfield subsidiary with no public ticker and no disclosed external funding.

Name

Learfield Licensing Partners

Legal name

CLC

Website

https://learfieldlicensing.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Learfield Licensing Partners operates CLC, the U.S. collegiate licensing division of Learfield, connecting colleges, universities, and K-12 institutions with manufacturers and retailers to monetize officially-licensed merchandise, serving 185M+ college fans.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Indianapolis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Collegiate Licensing Services: CLC generates revenue through collegiate licensing programs, connecting 185+ million college fans to officially-licensed merchandise and brand experiences. The company provides brand management strategies, national brand platforms, retail development, and brand protection services to colleges and universities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Learfield Licensing Partners (CLC) is the nation's leading collegiate licensing and marketing intermediary, connecting more than 185 million college fans to officially-licensed merchandise and brand experiences on behalf of colleges, universities, and athletic departments. The company delivers brand management strategies, national brand platforms, retail development and marketing, brand protection expertise, and proprietary data systems to institutional clients, while operating supporting platforms such as Brand Manager 360, Logos on Demand, License Search, and K-12 School Licensing.

Product overview

Learfield Licensing Partners (trading as CLC - Collegiate Licensing Company) operates as a unified platform-plus-services architecture for collegiate licensing and marketing. The core CLC platform connects over 185 million fans to college brands through officially-licensed merchandise and brand experiences. Supporting the core platform are specialized service modules including Brand Management Strategies, Unmatched Systems and Data, National Brand Platforms, Retail Development & Marketing, and Brand Protection Expertise. Additional offerings include the License Search tool for product verification, K-12 School Licensing for secondary education institutions, and CORE81 platform for athletic licensing. The company also offers tools such as Brand Manager 360 and Logos on Demand to support licensees and brand managers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Brand Manager 360: Brand management platform
• Logos on Demand
• K-12 School Licensing
• CORE81
• Licensing Partners International (LPI)

Products and services

• CLC (Collegiate Licensing Company) The nation's leading collegiate licensing and marketing platform that connects fans to college brands through officially-licensed merchandise and brand experiences, serving more than 185 million fans.
• K-12 School Licensing Specialized licensing services for K-12 educational institutions to extend their brand programs to secondary education markets.
• CORE81 A platform offered by Learfield for collegiate athletic licensing and brand management.
• Licensing Partners International (LPI) Trademark licensing and brand extensions for sports, nonprofit, and other sectors, operating as part of CLC/Learfield's licensing ecosystem.

Quantifiable outcome

• Serves 185+ million college fans

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Omaha AthleticscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 July 2026Omaha Athletics announced an extension of their longtime partnership with Learfield's licensing division, CLC. CLC is described as the nation's leading collegiate licensing partner, providing brand management, retail development, and licensing services to the athletic department.
• UNCF (United Negro College Fund)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 May 2026Licensing Partners International (LPI), a leader in trademark licensing and brand extensions, launched a strategic brand licensing initiative with UNCF. LPI operates as part of CLC/Learfield's licensing ecosystem, providing trademark licensing services for sports, nonprofit, and other sectors.
• K-12 SchoolsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCLC offers K-12 school licensing programs through k12licensing.com, providing licensing solutions for K-12 educational institutions seeking to protect and monetize their brands.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Beanstalk: Beanstalk is a global brand licensing agency that manages licensing programs for corporate, entertainment, sports, and lifestyle brands. It is a direct peer to CLC, offering the same end-to-end licensing agency service mix from contract negotiation through retail development.
• Roundhouse Licensing: Roundhouse Licensing is a sports and entertainment brand licensing agency that builds and manages licensing programs for rights holders. It is comparable to CLC in targeting college, sports, and entertainment clients with full-service licensing representation.
• Fermata Partners: Fermata Partners is a brand licensing consultancy and agency focused on sports, entertainment, and consumer brands. It directly competes with CLC and its LPI subsidiary on trademark licensing and brand extension mandates for major IP holders.
• IMG Licensing (Endeavor / TKO Group): IMG Licensing operates a global brand-licensing agency representing sports, entertainment, and consumer brands in licensing partnerships. It directly competes with CLC in the sports and entertainment brand-licensing agency market with comparable royalty-driven business model.

Broad incumbents

• Disney Consumer Products: Disney Consumer Products is the in-house licensing arm of The Walt Disney Company, managing a portfolio of entertainment, character, and brand licensing globally. Comparable to CLC as a broader, scaled licensing operation, though not focused on collegiate or institutional clients.
• Warner Bros. Discovery Consumer Products: Warner Bros. Discovery Consumer Products runs a global licensing program for entertainment IP (films, TV, characters). Comparable to CLC as a wide-portfolio licensing operator, but operating from the IP-owner side with a much broader entertainment-focused catalog rather than collegiate specialization.
• Players Inc (NFL Players Association): Players Inc is the licensing and marketing arm of the NFLPA, monetizing group licensing rights of NFL players through apparel, video games, and collectibles. Comparable to CLC as a group-rights licensing intermediary in U.S. sports with comparable royalty-driven model, though operating for pro athletes rather than universities.

Emerging players

• Starter (Iconix / G-III Apparel): Starter is a heritage licensed apparel brand that has been revived as a licensed collegiate and sportswear brand. Comparable to CLC in leveraging collegiate licensing IP for branded merchandise revenue, though operating from the brand-owner side rather than as an agency.
• Little Earth Productions: Little Earth Productions is a manufacturer of collegiate-licensed bags, accessories, and apparel. Comparable to CLC as an operator in the collegiate licensing ecosystem, but as a licensee/producer rather than as a licensing agency representing institutions.
• Bioworld Merchandising: Bioworld Merchandising designs and manufactures licensed apparel and accessories for entertainment, sports, and collegiate brands. It is comparable to CLC as a downstream licensee/manufacturer adjacent to collegiate licensing, with some overlap in collegiate merchandise.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/learfieldlp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/learfield-licensing-partners

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Learfield Licensing Partners