Background on the rules

Recently, conversation has surfaced regarding paying college athletes. Until recently, college athletes could not make money through their school or through paid endorsements like Nike. Division I and Division II athletes could accept athletic scholarships, while Division III could only accept academic scholarships and grants. On July 1st of 2021, the NCAA signed a new set of rules claiming any college athlete can make money off of their name through endorsements. This applies to any level of college play.

What’s the Claim?

Many articles, including ones from student led newspapers have claimed that the payment of athletes will ruin the sport. These articles, including one by collegesportsmadness.com, believes that college athletes being paid will create an unfair advantage to athletes as opposed to regular students. They also believe that this allowance of payment will cause the overall cost of college to raise. Due to the college athletes being paid, the college itself will need to take in more money through tuition to cover the costs.

Who is Behind This Claim?

After a quick search of this website, I can see they don’t cover a majority of college sports. They have articles regarding basketball, football, soccer, baseball and softball. They also cover a majority of Division I teams. This article was also published in April of 2021. This information is important to consider as we dive deeper into the facts behind this claim.

What’s the Evidence?

Now, as we look at other resources, we see these claims are not entirely true. In accordance with the new set or rules, college athletes can make money through endorsements, not through their colleges directly. This means that the colleges will not be covering the costs of this new income, but companies like Nike or BodyArmor. These claims and evidence are provided from many different sports websites, including student run newspapers, and news sources like CNBC. They cover many sports, including both men and women, and different levels of college play.

Rating

Needs context. At the time this article was provided, the new rules were just that of speculation. As of now, the rules are set in stone, and those of speculation turned out to be false. The money is coming from endorsements, so those worried that colleges will have to overcompensate for the new payments have nothing to worry about. The colleges themselves are not covering the costs, which means the tuition and “unfair advantages” to athletes will not exist. Athletes are more than just pawns used for our entertainment, and should be treated as such.