Changes seem to be coming to the House settlement already after it was approved by Judge Claudia Wilkin in June, as House plaintiff attorneys worked out a deal with power conferences and the NCAA to relax restrictions on NIL collectives, according to a report published on Tuesday from Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger.
The House settlement, which allows players to be paid directly from universities through revenue-sharing, brought forth new legislation allowing collegiate athletes to receive NIL payments. The settlement created the College Sports Commission, a new enforcement arm of the NCAA and an NIL clearinghouse, named NIL Go, created to ensure third-party NIL deals had a “valid business purpose.”
Two weeks ago, the College Sports Commission sent a memo to Ohio State and other schools that NIL deals signed with collectives would be held to a higher standard than those of regular businesses.
However, with the new agreement reportedly reached by the attorneys and the power conferences, collectives will be treated like other businesses when determining if NIL deals are legitimate, according to Dellenger.
In effect, the new resolution would create what some are referring to as a soft cap, as collectives could aim to provide athletes with financial compensation, in addition to money they may make from revenue sharing.
According to Dellenger, NIL deals signed by school-affiliated collectives wouldn’t count against a team’s revenue-sharing cap, as long as those deals are approved by the clearinghouse.
According to a spokesperson for the defendant conferences and the CSC, “conversations with class counsel remain ongoing. A formal statement will be issued when the issue has been resolved.”
This story was updated to include more accurate information
