Players’ associations for the NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball, NHL and MLS issued a joint statement Monday urging Congress to reject proposed legislation that would grant the NCAA and its members an antitrust exemption to address NIL issues.
The statement was in response to the Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements (SCORE) Act, introduced last week by members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. A markup on the bill is scheduled for Tuesday morning.
Advertisement
In their letter, the players’ associations warned that an antitrust exemption would permit the NCAA and its members to “collude to harm athletes.”
“Whatever progress the athletes have made has been a result of their use of the antitrust laws,” they wrote. “The SCORE Act would take that weapon away from them.”
The proposed legislation from seven Republican and two Democratic sponsors prevents athletes from obtaining employment status and mirrors many of the terms from the recent House vs. NCAA settlement. It would officially end most administrative restrictions on athletes’ NIL compensation, but it allows schools and conferences to establish what is and isn’t permissible. Should the federal legislation pass, it would override current state NIL laws, which vary from state to state.
Earlier Monday, two members of Congress from the state of Washington, Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and Republican Rep. Michael Baumgartner, issued a similar statement urging the House committee to delay the markup until there are significant changes.
Advertisement
“The bill appears to be a product of the richest conferences to cement into place the current power structure in college athletics that would leave only the wealthiest schools able to compete at the highest levels of college athletics,” the statement said.
All of the Power 5 conferences previously issued a statement endorsing the SCORE Act.
“In the absence of federal standards, student-athletes and schools have been forced to navigate a fractured regulatory framework for too long,” they wrote. “Following the historic House settlement, this bill represents a very encouraging step toward delivering the national clarity and accountability that college athletics desperately needs.”
Advertisement
Last week, the NCAA said in a statement that it “has made long overdue changes, mandating health and wellness benefits and ushering in a new system for Division I programs to provide up to 50 percent of athletic department revenue to student-athletes, but some of the most important changes can only come from Congress.”
“This bill reflects many student-athletes’ priorities, and the NCAA is committed to working with Congress to build a bipartisan path forward that ensures the long-term success of college sports and the ongoing opportunities they provide to young people,” wrote Tim Buckley, the NCAA’s senior vice president of external affairs.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey also praised the bill Monday.
“I think what’s happening in college athletics is a nonpartisan issue, but using the typical nomenclature, to have members of both of our major political parties willing to step out and introduce the SCORE Act, is a positive step,” he said.
The players’ associations’ letter noted that only two industries in the United States have antitrust law exemptions: railroads and Major League Baseball (partially).
Advertisement
“The NCAA should not have a blank check to impose (its) will on the financial future of over 500,000 college athletes,” they wrote.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
College Football, Men’s College Basketball, Women’s College Basketball, College Sports
2025 The Athletic Media Company
