The union representing National Football League players has lined up six partners including Harvard Innovation Lab to launch the sports accelerator.

NFL Players Association (NFLPA), a union representing US-based sports franchise National Football League (NFL) players, and six partners including Harvard University’s Innovation Lab today launched accelerator One Team Collective (OTC).

Launched in 2011, Harvard Innovation Lab runs a 12-week Venture Incubation Program that combines mentoring, workshops and community to help teams of Harvard students develop their startup projects.

The other five founding partners are chip maker Intel, sports tech consultancy Sports Innovation Lab, Harvard University’s Innovation Lab and investment firms Madrona Venture Group and Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers (KPCB).

Representatives from these six partners will consider submissions on a rolling basis, with selected startups invited to participate in pitch days scheduled throughout the year. The first pitch day will take place in February 2017 in Hoston.

OTC is seeking sports-related businesses and product ideas in areas such as fan engagement, data analytics, performance and training, mobile fitness, sports nutrition, consumer products, fantasy sports, gaming, wearables, new media and virtual and augmented reality.

The accelerator will offer licensing and content rights, so that businesses can capitalise on the names of more than 2,000 current NFL players. Intel, KPCB and Madrona will also supply business advice and may provide capital, while LeadDog will assist with marketing.

Harvard Innovation Lab will provide resources while Sports Innovation Lab, which also launches today, will offer additional support both to the collective and portfolio companies. Sports Innovation Lab will be led by managing director Isaiah Kacyvenski, a former player for Seattle Seahawks.

An added feature is an Athlete Advisory Board, comprising active and former NFL players, who will work with portfolio companies to provide strategic advice. 

Ahmad Nassar, chairman of OTC and president of NFL Players, the licensing and marketing arm of NFLPA, told TechCrunch that up until now, out of more than 500 licensing deals, NFLPA had taken equity instead of cash only a handful of times.

– A version of this article first appeared on our sister site Global Corporate Venturing.