The NCAA and its member institutions have a mess, thanks to decades of corruption that prevented athletes from making money, directly or indirectly. They can either clean it up on their own, or they can run to Congress.
For now, they’re running to Congress.
And the American pro sports unions have aligned to ask Congress not to give the NCAA and its members what they want — an antitrust exemption that would allow them to impose rules regarding matters like player pay and movement.
“Since many of today’s college athletes will become our future members, we have a vested interest in ensuring they are protected now,” the unions said in a statement.
As the Energy and Commerce Committee considers the Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements (SCORE) Act, the Players Associations strongly urge Committee Members to reject any antitrust exemption or legal liability shield from legislation regulating college athletics,” the unions said. “Whatever progress the athletes have made has been a result of their use of the antitrust laws. The SCORE Act would take that weapon away from them. . . . Granting an antitrust exemption to the NCAA and its members gives the green light for the organization and schools to collude and work against student athletes. . . . Historically, antitrust exemptions have been used to set prices, limit wages, and restrict access to opportunities provided by open markets, all while shielding abuse from legal recourse. . . . It is not hard to imagine a situation where NCAA and its members collude to restrict revenue sharing and deny student athletes fair compensation with the confidence of immunity against legal action. Indeed, they have been doing exactly that for decades.”
Amen to all of that. The NCAA and its members should be expected to solve this problem on their own, without an antitrust exemption from the federal government.
Congress should not give them a Hail Mary. They should be required to invite unionization, and to deal with the players on a level playing field.
