NCAA to compensate student-athletes in record antitrust deal

The financial landscape of collegiate athletics has changed dramatically in recent years. Athletes, who were once forbidden from receiving any kind of compensation, have reaped the financial benefits of the National Collegiate Athletics Association permitting NIL (name, image, and likeness) deals.

College sports is evolving quickly, and the changes happening within it are especially true after multiple outlets reported on Thursday evening that the NCAA agreed to pay its athletes as part of a resolution to three lingering antitrust lawsuits.

The NCAA’s Board of Governors and commissioners from the country’s five biggest conferences (collectively known as the Power Five) agreed to implement a revenue-sharing model of financial compensation that would effectively eliminate the amateur competition model that existed within the NCAA for decades. The restructuring is part of the settlement stemming from multiple antitrust lawsuits totaling around $2.8 billion.

The funds would be dispersed over the next decade to over 14,000 former and current college athletes, NBC News reported.

“The five autonomy conferences and the NCAA agreeing to settlement terms is an important step in the continuing reform of college sports that will provide benefits to student-athletes and provide clarity in college athletics across all divisions for years to come,” leaders from the Power Five conference and the NCAA announced in a joint statement. “This settlement is also a road map for college sports leaders and Congress to ensure this uniquely American institution can continue to provide unmatched opportunity for millions of students.”

Additionally, NBC News it is believed that the payments could be distributed as early as 2025.

“This landmark settlement will bring college sports into the 21st century, with college athletes finally able to receive a fair share of the billions of dollars of revenue that they generate for their schools,” said Steve Berman, a lead attorney for the plaintiffs in the case. “Our clients are the bedrock of the NCAA’s multibillion-dollar business and finally can be compensated in an equitable and just manner for their extraordinary athletic talents.”

The NCAA and Power Five conference chairs called the financial agreement a “road map” that would define the “next chapter of college sports.”

The original lawsuit was filed by two student-athletes, one former and one current, who claimed that the NCAA made millions of dollars off the work of college athletes but prohibited them from earning endorsement money, NBC News reported.

“For the first time in history, we will now have a fair and just economic system for college athletes. I could not be more delighted. But no celebrations until the system is in place,” attorney Jeffrey Kessler said in response to the agreement.

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NCAA president Charlie Baker was enthusiastic about the deal’s prospects and supported the opportunities it presented for student-athletes.

“The most important part about the settlement — and let’s face it, there’s still a lot of work to be done there — is it creates some clarity and some visibility on a whole bunch of issues that have sort of been roiling everybody for a while,” Baker said. “The other thing it does is create predictability and stability for schools. It creates a tremendous opportunity for student-athletes.”