Civic Register
| 4.5.21
Supreme Court Hears Case Involving NCAA Rules Against Compensating Student-Athletes
Should NCAA student-athletes be allowed to earn income beyond what they receive from athletic scholarships?
What’s the story?
- The Supreme Court heard arguments last week in a case challenging the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) rules that prohibit compensation of student-athletes beyond their athletic scholarships, which cover tuition and the cost-of-attendance and may include a stipend.
- The hearing occurred just days before the conclusion of the NCAA’s “March Madness” basketball tournaments and comes amid a broader push for the relaxation of rules to allow NCAA athletes to earn income by using their name, image, and likeness.
- Known as NCAA v. Alston, the case involves a class-action lawsuit that alleges the NCAA’s rules against compensating college athletes violates federal antitrust law. The NCAA contends that allowing student-athletes to be paid and the resulting economic competition between colleges would “destroy consumer demand for college sports.”
- When the case was heard at the district court level, the federal judge ruled that the NCAA could prohibit compensation related to athletics, such as a salary, but barred the NCAA from limiting benefits that are related to education, such as a paid post-graduate internship. That decision was upheld by the Ninth Circuit on appeal. The justices asked a number of questions that illustrate the complexities of the issue:
- Chief Justice John Roberts asked about NCAA rules that allow colleges and universities to pay for an insurance policy to protect their athletes and compensate them if they receive an injury that derails their professional sports careers and whether they constitute “pay for play” because it incentivizes the student-athlete to delay going pro.
- Justice Clarence Thomas noted that it was “odd” that college coaches’ salaries are as high as they are despite the NCAA’s focus on amateurism. (In most states, the highest-paid public employee is a head football or basketball coach at one of the flagship public universities.)
- Justice Stephen Breyer called it a “tough case” because college sports “are not an ordinary product” and it’s “only partly economic.” He also expressed concerns about “judges getting into the business of deciding how amateur sports should be run.”
- Justice Elena Kagan and Justice Brett Kavanaugh asked whether allowing colleges and universities to pay additional “education-related benefits” to be broadly interpreted in a way that would open the floodgates for automatic payments to student-athletes in what becomes more like a regular labor market.
- A decision in the case will likely be issued by this summer.
— Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: SneakinDeacon via Flickr / Creative Commons)
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In what world does it make sense for an adult to not be compensated to their satisfaction and abilities? Oh yeah, the world of college athletics. The NCAA's rules on compensation for student athletes is just the latest form of slavery, or at the very least indentured servitude. Imagine the pitch: "Come work for us here for 4 years and we'll give you the opportunity for an education at a discount. We may make millions of dollars from your efforts, but you cannot accept any real compensation or endorsements. Remember you need us more than we need you. We will just find someone else and give them this same opportunity if that's not good enough for you. There are 10 more athletes right behind you who would love to have the same opportunity". That is indentured servitude. Which is just another form of slavery. If a student athlete can generate income on their abilities and output, what right does anyone else have to limit that income? Boosters abuse and take advantage of student athletes you say? Wonder how they continue to exist? It couldn't be as simple as drawing a conclusion similar to the history of prohibition, could it? I mean organized crime existed before prohibition. But not quite on the same grand scale as during prohibition though. Prohibition gave criminals an opportunity to break the law and exploit people for profit. Not much unlike the NCAA and every college and university does currently with student athletes. Boosters are in the shadows making deals and supporting the systematic exploitation of student athletes, all at the benefit of the NCAA and the universities. Why does the NCAA not allow professional-level compensation and endorsements for student athletes? Competition. The NCAA and universities get the money in our current system of student athlete exploitation. The students aren't allowed to compete for any of that same pool of money. They are expected to tow the line and be a good boy/girl, and are dangled educations as payment. Like indentured servitude. It's shameful really that this system has been allowed to exist for so long. If we insist on keeping things as they are, we should describe them as they are. Let's stop calling them scholarships, and start calling them servitude contracts. Rename the NCAA to something like the College Athletic Slavery Syndicate, or Student Athlete Exploitation Association. Sounds about right. I'm not good at naming things cleverly. Neither is whoever came up with NCAA for an accurate description of what the NCAA does and is.
I'm pretty sure that most who are against compensation are looking at this through the same lens that justifies unpaid internships & that while still playing for a school one is in the process of learning & honing skills toward becoming professional but, then you get to the line where others might be making significant profit from your efforts & you are not being justly compensated for the work you've so assiduously put in ( glory but, no gold) & as with everything involving human beings it will no doubt be subject to abuse.
Yes. The argument of amateurism is trash. They are treated as employees with their education sold as payment despite being treated a something in the background.
NO NO NO. they get a free college education free meals free boarding and Free tutoring throughout their college career. That is priceless unless your some moron athlete that takes advanced frisbee throwing and their major. Also how would you make it fair? The biggest thing is the excess money also goes to support other sports like golf and tennis and debate teams. How are you going to make those funds up? So what narrow minded people are saying is give some kid that is good at football a free ride and pay him and make the band members and cheerleaders pay their own way?
A free education and the exposure to the future jobs is enough. Schools should be limited to the amount they can spend on athletes so that all schools have an equal opportunity to recruit talent.
Colleges make billions of dollars off the back of their slaves. It’s about time to share some the students.
Unlike Texas’s Three Stooges most people go to college for an education. Let’s keep it that way. Student athletes aren’t student athletes if they’re on campus for any other reason than to get an education. Otherwise the public school system is all they need to play professional sports.
Any compensation should be for all the participants and be used to help those injured and lose their scholarships because they cannot play.
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The primary reason these athletes are in a university or college is for education. If we are to allow these athletes to profit from their sports participation, we will be placing a greater value on money and athletic ability over education and intelligence. Most athletes do not make it to the pro level and need to have a real job. All athletes have only a limited time to profit from their career. Eventually they age and are not able to play at a level that allows a career in sports to go on forever. They need something real to fall back on. They need an education to insure that they can have a career outside their sport . Education is much more certain and more profitable in the end.
Yes. As long as government money keeps out of the schools. But that's not happening.
Yes I do. Like any celebrity they have the right to burnish their image and ideas anywhere that is marketable to their advantage. There can be nothing wrong about that.
Colleges make billions from their athletes. So why not share or stop making money off of them.
Most of these athletes are low IQ students that are lucky to be in school at all. They should not be further rewarded.
No-they already get scholarships in exchange for playing sports-that's compensation enough.
Payment is free tuition, room and board, books, travel ect.. AND hopefully earning a degree that will be useful when their sport career ends!
Amateurs need to remain amateurs. The purpose of college is education and the focus needs to remain on that. These people are getting that for free. That should be enough. They should also be required to stay in school until they graduate or pay back every cent of their scholarships. College is not a minor league of the Sports/Entertainment business.
Another example of rich, old, white men trying to use young black men to prop up their power and wealth. Pay the athletes who bring in millions for their schools!
If the universities are profiting from the work the athletes are giving then the athletes must receive a fair share of that profit.
I've always hated organized team sports. Their supporters laud the spirit of comaraderie, cooperation, brotherhood, etc. I've always only seen the exact opposite. In my experience, team sports encourage aggression, violence and an Us vs. Them and Win At All Costs Mentality. And of course, BIG MONEY! LITERALLY EVERYONE EXCEPT THE COLLEGE ATHLETES MAKES TONS OF MONEY OFF THE PLAYERS! So, maybe its time players got a little of that cash for all the efforts, pain and suffering. Ya think?