NIL collective leaders headed back to Capitol Hill for meetings with Sens. Booker, Cruz

Leaders of NIL collectives will return to the halls of Congress this week, the first time since the NCAA and power conferences agreed to terms on a settlement in the House v. NCAA lawsuit.

The full terms of the settlement agreement are still being worked out. Judge Claudia Wilken in California Northern District Court still needs to ratify the settlement and will have the option to deny the agreement. The multibillion-dollar settlement calls for the NCAA to pay more than $2.7 billion in damages over 10 years to former and current athletes. Schools will have the opportunity to opt-in to a revenue-sharing agreement, with the option to share roughly $20 million per year with players.

The NCAA is still expected to lobby for legislation that will codify the House v. NCAA settlement, specifically limited antitrust protection and classifying athletes are not employees. NCAA President Charlie Baker previously called the settlement “a road map for college sports leaders and Congress.” Of the more than a dozen bills proposed focused on college sports in the last three years, none have even made it to the floor of Congress.

The Collective Association (TCA), a trade association that represents 40 NIL entities, has a slew of meetings scheduled for Wednesday on Capitol Hill. TCA leaders are slated to meet with Sen. Cory Booker, Sen. Ted Cruz, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Sen. Lindsey Graham, Sen. John Hickenlooper and Rep. Russell Fry, sources tell On3. Meetings are also scheduled with staff representing the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“They’re not giving us the time because just the overall arrogance of the NCAA is they can do whatever they want, and nobody else really matters,” TCA executive director Russell White told On3. “In their eyes, it doesn’t matter how many collectives we have. They are singularly focused on trying to get this exemption and protections so that they can continue to run their racket the way they do. They don’t care to discuss things with us.”

Meetings set with Congressional NIL powerbrokers

TCA retained Tidal Basin Advisors’ Jesse McCollum, a former longtime Democratic lobbyist for Nike, in January. The organization also enlisted Yong Choe, a former Rite Aid lobbyist who served as director of business outreach and member services for the conservative House Republican Study Committee and worked for the House Energy and Commerce Committee. 

A ranking member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Cruz has the position and political clout to push through legislation. He’s long been viewed as a power player when it comes to the NCAA securing its long-sought legislation. Cruz held a roundtable in March with multiple NIL stakeholders, including former Alabama football coach Nick Saban.

Booker has also been a vocal advocate for athletes. He played college football at Stanford and has worked on numerous bills that would give medical protections to college athletes. Most recently, he worked on a bipartisan bill last summer with Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Jerry Moran.

Graham previously circulated legislation titled the “College Sports NIL Clearinghouse Act of 2023″ that would establish a clearinghouse. The legislation could have the power to fine anyone, sue anyone and ban anyone from participating in college athletics.

TCA: Don’t give NCAA a ‘get out of jail free card’

Sources have indicated to On3 that there is little appetite to get anything pushed through Congress before the November election. However, there could be some momentum at the beginning of the next Congress in 2025.

“All we can offer to them is a reminder that let’s not just step back and give the NCAA a get out of jail free card,” White said. “We are going to make a point and make sure people understand that the reason we’re here, the reason all this has happened, is the NCAA.

“The NCAA has not made a single decision on behalf of the athletes that they haven’t been forced to make. And it’s not as if they’re all of a sudden turn from bad actors to the good guys and put the athletes first.”