The NCAA and its power conferences agreed on Thursday to allow college athletes to receive pay directly from the universities they compete for, setting up a potential break from the organization’s century-old system of amateurism.
The two sides in the House v. NCAA class-action lawsuit formally announced terms of a multi-billion-dollar settlement that stands to reshape college sports, including $2.75 billion in back-pay damages the NCAA will owe to former Division I athletes, as well as a future revenue sharing model between power-conference schools and athletes.
“This landmark settlement will bring college sports into the 21st century, with college athletes finally able to receive a fair share of the billions of dollars of revenue that they generate for their schools,” Steve Berman, one of lead plaintiff attorneys, said in a news release.
The announcement comes after a week in which the NCAA Board of Governors and leaders from the Power 5 conferences — ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC — all voted to approve the proposed terms. NCAA president Charlie Baker described it as an “important step in the continuing reform of college sports,” an enterprise that has faced an onslaught of legal challenges and policy changes in recent years.
“We have been marching down…
