<\/p>\n
In June, a district court ruled<\/a> that universities were permitted to distribute a portion of revenue directly to athletes, upheaving the decades-old rules that prohibited direct revenue distributions. This year, universities will distribute $20.6 million in revenue directly to athletes.<\/p>\n Part of that ruling involved regulating the name, image and likeness (NIL) space that has transformed college athletics in the past four years. In 2021, a judge ruled that the NCAA could no longer prohibit college athletes from profiting off of their NIL, and athletes started cashing in.<\/p>\n While some athlete endorsements were legitimate, profitable business ventures, many were \u201cpay-for-play\u201d deals to draw athletes to their schools. As a result, athletes were being compensated well over their \u201cfair market value.\u201d The majority of this compensation came from NIL collectives, fundraising organizations established by boosters to bring athletes to their schools. To raise money, collectives hold events like dinners and autograph sessions featuring their schools top athletes.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the recent ruling ends these pay-for-play deals, forcing changes to the operational models of many collectives. Beginning this academic year, all third-party NIL deals will have to be approved by the \u201cNIL Go<\/a>\u201d clearinghouse, operated by the consulting firm Deloitte, to confirm that the deal compensates athletes for their fair market value. Among other metrics<\/a>, \u201cNIL Go\u201d will analyze an athlete\u2019s performance, social media presence and brand influence to make such determinations. Deloitte estimates<\/a> that 70% of past deals would have been denied under the current rules.\u00a0<\/p>\n