NCAA Division I Schools Allowed More Involvement in Securing NIL Deals

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA (April 17, 2024) – The Division I Council on Wednesday, April 17 unanimously adopted a proposal that allows schools to provide assistance in supporting name, image and likeness activities for student-athletes who disclose NIL arrangements, effective Aug. 1. The council’s action is not final until the council meeting concludes April 18 and is subject to ratification by the Division I Board of Directors at its meeting later in April.

Under the new rule — which was introduced by the council in January — member schools would be able to increase NIL-related support for student-athletes, including identifying NIL opportunities and facilitating deals between student-athletes and third parties. Student-athletes are not obligated to accept assistance from the school and must maintain authority over the terms in their NIL agreements.

“Student-athletes have been have purposefully and regularly involved throughout the development process of the NIL amendments,” said Morgyn Wynne, vice chair of the Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and former softball student-athlete at Oklahoma State. “SAAC supports the outcome today from the council’s adopted legislation regarding institutional involvement, transparency and disclosure because each element provides some stability and assistance to a very unstable environment. SAAC believes these changes are what student-athletes need as a resource to help realistically guide them through conversations of brand worth. We look forward to seeing how the student-athlete protections passed back in January and today’s adoption work together to transform the NIL landscape and the student-athlete experience.”

Notably, the existing prohibitions against pay-for-play and schools compensating student-athletes for use of their NIL remain in place.

“The council’s action today represents yet another step toward providing student-athletes with increased support and clarity in the NIL landscape,” said Lynda Tealer, deputy athletics director at Florida, chair of the council and chair of the NIL working group. “The working group heard from student-athletes that they would welcome NIL assistance from their schools, whom they trust, and we continue to prioritize their experience as we craft rules for NIL-related activities.”

The council also amended the rule adopted in January pertaining to disclosure requirements for student-athletes. Moving forward, to receive school support for their NIL activities, student-athletes will be required to disclose to their schools information related to any NIL activity equal to or greater than $600 in value, no later than 30 days after entering or signing the NIL agreement.

The data — which will be deidentified and aggregated for trend reporting and some level of transparency — will include contact information for involved parties and service providers, terms of the arrangement (services rendered, term length, compensation and payment structure), and applicable compensation between a student-athlete and service provider. Prospective student-athletes will be required to disclose the same information for pre-enrollment NIL activity within 30 days of enrollment to accept school assistance in NIL activities after becoming a student-athlete.

The amended rule also allows for schools to develop and implement their own policies to best secure disclosures and provide a reasonable grace period for student-athletes who do not report within the 30 days.