A multibillion-dollar legal settlement with the potential to reshape the business of college sports inched closer to its fast-approaching finish line during a federal court hearing Monday.
Judge Claudia Wilken declined to provide final approval of a deal between the NCAA and plaintiff attorneys representing past, present and future Division I athletes, but she directed lawyers to address a short list of her remaining concerns within one week.
“I think it’s a good settlement,” Wilken said while wrapping up the seven-hour hearing, before quickly adding, “Don’t quote me.”
The NCAA has agreed to pay roughly $2.8 billion in damages to past and current athletes to settle three federal antitrust lawsuits that claim the association’s rules have limited the athletes’ earning potential in various ways. The deal, commonly referred to as the House settlement after lead plaintiff Grant House, also would create a new system for schools to pay players directly, starting this summer.
In exchange, the NCAA will be allowed to limit how much each school can spend on its athletes per year — an effective salary cap that is expected to start at roughly $20.5 million per school and increase annually during the 10-year lifespan of the deal. The deal also gives the industry’s most powerful conferences an increased ability to police the name, image and likeness deals between athletes and boosters, which is intended to keep teams from using their boosters to circumvent the $20.5 million cap.
