Virginia law allows the state’s colleges and universities to directly pay athletes through NIL deals
RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin signed a law Thursday that would allow state colleges and universities to pay their athletes directly through name, image and likeness compensation agreements, a measure believed to be the first of its kind.
The law, which takes effect July 1, was signed a day after the NCAA relaxed some of its NIL restrictions, but noted that its long-standing “bans on pay-for-play and schools compensating student-athletes for the use of their NIL remain in force. ”
Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel said other states could follow Virginia’s lead. Several states have pending legislation, including Oklahoma, Nebraska and Louisiana.
“Virginia’s decision — by lawmakers there and the governor to sign it — I think is a real kickstart and puts it right on our doorstep,” Manuel said in an interview with The Associated Press.
The NCAA in July 2021 allowed college athletes to make money from deals with brands or companies that compensate them for things like endorsements or personal appearances. That has made millions of dollars available to athletes and prompted many states to pass laws that would prevent the NCAA from capping NIL revenue, which most see as a boost to recruiting.
“If this bill brings us closer to a federal or state solution for college athletics, it will be more than worth it,” University of Virginia athletics director Carla Williams told ESPN. “Until then, we have an obligation to ensure that we maintain a top athletics program at UVA.”
Earlier this week, the NCAA moved forward with legislation that would allow its 1,100 member schools to be more actively involved in securing sponsorship and endorsement deals for their athletes, including facilitating opportunities between third parties and athletes.
Virginia law clears the way for donors to work directly with a school to pay athletes. One of the bill’s sponsors, Del. Terry Austin, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that the bipartisan measure was drafted by an associate athletic director at the University of Virginia.
Virginia Tech athletic director Whit Babcock told ESPN that the school is considering several options for NIL payments, from contracting with a marketing agency or a booster-backed collective to pay the athletes in lieu of money directly from the athletic department.
When NCAA President Charlie Baker proposed a new division of Division I athletics in December, he said all DI schools should try to bring most NIL activities in-house and consider joint licensing agreements with their athletes that would allow schools to keep the athletes pay.
State lawmakers have recently been a catalyst in pushing for changes to NCAA rules surrounding player compensation. In 2019, California lawmakers passed a bill allowing college athletes to capitalize on their fame, other states quickly followed suit and the NCAA was forced to lift its regulations. What remains is a patchwork of rules across the country.
Since then, the NCAA has suffered a number of losses in court related to its basic model of amateurism, amid growing support for empowering athletes.
Last month, the investigation into booster-backed collectives or other third parties that had made NIL deals with DI athletes ended. A few days later, Dartmouth men’s basketball players took an early step toward forming the first union in college sports.
“I think the time is coming where student-athletes are going to be allowed to become employees or receive money even if they are not employees,” Manuel told the AP.
___
AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football