The NCAA and its five power conferences have approved a deal that paves the way for schools to pay athletes directly, a change that would crush any last notions of amateurism in major college sports. The agreement, which settles three antitrust cases and was voted on throughout this week, includes almost $2.8 billion in damages. That money will be distributed to current and former athletes, who sued in House v. NCAA over not being compensated for the use of their name, image and likeness (NIL) on television broadcasts. In a joint statement Thursday night, the NCAA and its conferences announced that they had agreed to the initial terms. And no matter how high the damages are, the most far-reaching component of the settlement is a new revenue-sharing model, which would pay athletes a cut of money their schools generate from broadcast rights deals, ticket sales and sponsorships, among other streams.

Source: Washington Post May 24, 2024 02:39 UTC