Senate Warns of Legislation Threatening College Athletics Competitiveness and Athlete Rights

As college football season begins, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) has written to the presidents and chancellors of over 350 Division I universities, warning that the SCORE Act legislation would further entrench current inequities in college athletics and consolidate power with the SEC and Big Ten. The bill, which has already passed the House Education and Workforce Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee, would grant the NCAA broad antitrust immunity, lift the revenue share cap, and create an arms race among schools. Sen. Cantwell argues that this would worsen the existing chasm between the most powerful conferences and all other schools, raising costs for universities and students, and creating an unfair competitive environment.

Key Takeaways:

• The SCORE Act would grant the NCAA broad antitrust immunity, lifting the revenue share cap and creating an arms race among schools, entrenching the current inequities in college athletics.
• The bill would grant the NCAA significant federally granted authority, giving it unprecedented antitrust exemption and allowing it to regulate under what conditions schools can participate in the Association.
• The SCORE Act would also codify the NCAA's authority to regulate participation in the Association and enable it to engage in anticompetitive conduct, running roughshod over smaller conferences and schools.
• The bill would eliminate athletes' legal rights, rolling back court decisions that have resulted in college athletes' ability to earn compensation.
• The SCORE Act would drive money away from women athletes and Olympic sports, creating uncertainty for the hundreds of thousands of women athletes competing in intercollegiate sports.
• The bill would decimate the Olympic pipeline, making it harder for many schools to keep and fully fund Olympic sports, as Division I FBS schools spend 66 percent of their budgets on football and basketball alone.

Statistics:

• 22 percent remains the fixed revenue sharing cap set by the House v. NCAA settlement (House v. NCAA settlement)
• The SCORE Act would repeal the 22 percent revenue sharing cap, entrenching the current arms race and leaving small and mid-sized schools unable to compete for championships and post-season games (Sen. Cantwell's letter)
• The Texas Longhorns are expected to spend $35-40 million on their football roster for 2025 (Sen. Cantwell's letter)
• The University of Oregon used $23 million in collective money to build its roster last season (Sen. Cantwell's letter)
• 65 percent of Team USA athletes who competed at the Paris 2024 Games were trained and competed in college sports (Sen. Cantwell's letter)
• 66 percent of Division I FBS schools' budgets are spent on football and basketball alone (Sen. Cantwell's letter)
• Over 30 Division I athletic programs have been eliminated in the past two years (Sen. Cantwell's letter)

Sources:

• Sen. Maria Cantwell's letter to the presidents and chancellors of over 350 Division I universities
• House v. NCAA settlement
• Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation
• NCAA