A report produced by the NCPA and Drexel University estimated the average annual fair market value of big-time college football and mens basketball players between 2011 and 2015 was $137,357 and $289,031, respectively, and concluded that football players only receive about 17% of their fair market value, while mens basketball players receive approximately 8% of theirs. Full athletic scholarships are only guaranteed a year at a time, meaning student-athletes are one catastrophic injury away from potentially losing their scholarship. 1. 1, 2021], Jessica Gresko, High Court Agrees to Hear NCAA Athlete Compensation Case, nsjonline.com, Dec. 16, 2020, Daniel Roberts, Poll: 60% of Americans Support College Athletes Getting Paid Endorsements, finance.yahoo.com, Oct. 8, 2019, NCPA, NCAA Refusal to Vote on NIL Pay Is Slap in the Face to Athletes, ncpanow.org, Jan. 11, 2021, Bloomberg, The NCAA Raked in Over $1 Billion Last Year, fortune.com, Mar. They argue that athletes receive sufficient education-related benefits and that universities should not pay athletes. In a unanimous decision issued on June 21, 2021, the Supreme Court ruled the NCAA cannot bar universities from making education-related payments to student-athletes. procon@eb.com, 2022 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. Find The Perfect Job: 201,546 College Student Jobs Are Available on Salarship. So while a few athletes would benefit financially, a greater number of students would see their athletic opportunities disappear. Just because there are rules prohibiting the compensation of college athletes doesnt mean it doesnt happen, and over the years there have been numerous scandals. A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the top two college football positionsthe quarterback and wide receiverwere worth $2.4 million and $1.3 million per year respectively, while starting mens basketball players in the Power Five schools were worth between $800,000 and $1.2 million per year. Why or why not? For example, fair market value for a University of Texas football player was $513,922. Our peer review tool allows you to receive feedback and learn the strengths and weaknesses of your essay for free. White People? Consider the elite players in At 6 feet 7 inches and 285 pounds, Williamson, a freshman basketball player at Duke University, is impressing fans with his combination of size, strength and leaping ability. Athletes Shouldn't Be Paid," about the NCAA's decision to allow college On June 30, 2021, fewer than 12 hours before some states NIL laws went into effect, the NCAA Division I Board of Directors issued an interim ruling stating that Bylaw 12 (the rules that say athletes cannot receive payment) will not be enforced. Governor of California Gavin Newsom, stated, Collegiate student athletes put everything on the line their physical health, future career prospects and years of their lives to compete. Is it because its unnecessary? No Division II or III schools revenue exceeded expenses. All told, only about 1% of student-athletes receive a full scholarship. It's not about finding the right answer because there is no right answer. Takeaway: Paying student-athletes would reduce NCAAs spending on expensive facilities. You dont have to get past the preface to find questions that feel at home in todays world: Many of the questions asked way back in 1929 continue to resurface today, and many of them have eventually ended up seeking answers in court. Listen, 90 percent of these college guys are gonna spend it on tats, weed, kicks, Xboxes, beer and swag. The NBA requires players to be at least 19 and a year out of high school, while the NFL requires players to be three years out of high school. Ed OBannon, a former professional basketball player, won a lawsuit in 2014 where the NCAA was ordered to pay $44.4 million in attorneys fees and another $1.5 million in costs to lawyers for the plaintiffs in the Ed OBannon class-action antitrust lawsuit against the NCAA. What good will the athletes scholarship do when he cant find time to work on them? Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing for the majority, stated, traditions alone cannot justify the NCAAs decision to build a massive money-raising enterprise on the backs of student athletes who are not fairly compensated. 23, 2018, Craig Garthwaite, Who Profits from Amateurism? However, if the situation is similar with the football team of Northwestern University, schools would have access to raw sports talents. Feldman explained, That was a shape-shifting decision that in many ways fundamentally changed economics of college football and college football television. In June, the governing boards for all three NCAA divisions approved what they termed "a uniform interim policy" that suspends previous rules regarding endorsements for all incoming and current student-athletes in all sports. If adopted, the rule would only apply to Division I schools and would be temporary until the NCAA or Congress acts. In other words, it would be more prudent and more profitable for college athletes to focus on education as their compensation. Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski said afterward that Williamson had sustained a knee injury, but that the joint was stable.. Proper citation depends on your preferred or required style manual. A handful of big sports programs would pay top dollar for a select few athletes, while almost every other college would get caught up in a bidding war it couldnt afford. Further confusing the issue, the NCAA does not have a consistent or fair definition of amateurism and allows some significant forms of financial compensation. If a university decided to pay student-athletes, where would that money come from? WebWhy College Athletes Should Not Be Paid Compensation Conundrum. Respondents were split 50/50 in a June 1, 2021 New York Times survey about whether the NCAA strictly limiting paid compensation is constitutional. Many of them dont want to go already, combined with the fact that some may be receiving grades without doing any work. Accessed February 21, 2023. https://www.procon.org/headlines/paying-college-athletes-top-3-pros-and-cons/, NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association), "Syllabus National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston et al.,", The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, National Collegiate Athletic Association, britannica.com, Sep. 14, 2020, NCAA, What Is the NCAA?, ncaa.org (accessed Mar. Before we dive into the debate over paying student-athletes, let's be clear about the NCAA's position. Colleges reap billions from these student athletes sacrifices and success but, in the same breath, block them from earning a single dollar. The case, NCAA vs. Alston et al named for former West Virginia University football player Shawne Alston, one of several athletes who initiated the suit centered on student-athletes from Division I men's and women's basketball and FBS football. Many are captivated by his thrilling monster dunks. The University of North Carolina became the first school to organize group licensing deals for student athletes in July 2021. Financial irresponsibility Amateur players receiving compensation just seems like a complete disaster. Assuming a free-market system, the chasm between the haves and have-nots would widen even further. Some say that if it becomes a law to pay all student-athletes, thousands of universities will drop their athletic department simply because they cant afford to pay them. Money will only add to this fact. It also raised an important question: Should Williamson ever suit up for another college game? But paying athletes would distort the economics of college sports in a way that would hurt the broader community of student-athletes, universities, fans and alumni. Essay Example, with Outline Published by gudwriter on November 23, November 23, Here is an essay example on whether college athletes should be paid or not. Gabe Feldman, JD, Professor of Sports Law, Director of the Sports Law Program and Associate Provost for NCAA compliance at Tulane University, noted that the last time the NCAA was at the Supreme Court was in 1984 (NCAA vs. the Board of Regents of the University of Oklahoma). Have you heard of the salary controversy regarding college athletes? UNC athletes will be able to earn money for NIL marketing including UNC trademarks and logos in groups of three or more athletes. ", Further, the NCAA stipulates, "You are not eligible in any sport if, after collegiate enrollment, you accept any pay for promoting a commercial product or service or allow your name or picture to be used for promoting a commercial product or service.". To the truly jaded, this is a blatant form of exploitation. Race isnt the only issue, but statistically it plays a huge part in the reason why many people oppose the fact that college athletes should be getting paid. A 2019 Seton Hall Sports Poll found that 60% of those surveyed agreed that college athletes should be allowed compensation for their name, image, and/or likeness, while 32% disagreed, and 8% were unsure. A likely scenario would involve universities cutting minor sports to pay athletes competing in the marquee sports. Takeaway: Even though paying college athletes a salary would lead to legal issues, it is illegal to limit educational compensation for college athletes. The NCAA is not above the law.. Paying players would destroy that illusion, the N.C.A.A. WebCollege athletes deserve to be paid because they are the only ones not being paid in the college sports industry. Wake up to the day's most important news. No college should be required to pay athletes, and no pay structure needs to be planned. The big question is:what are the arguments for and against paid college athletes? Explore the NCAA site and think critically about the organization as the governing body of college athletics. [35] Further, a Gallup poll of 74,385 U.S. adults with a bachelors degree, finds that college graduates who participated in NCAA athletics experience a host of positive long-term life outcomes at greater rates than non-athletes. [36], Those positive outcomes include: 70% of NCAA athletes graduated in four years or fewer, 50% agree that college was worth the cost, 39% earned an advanced degree, 33% have good jobs after graduation, and 24% Salarship.com is the sole proprietorship of, student-athletes should be playing sports with education as its primary driver, 201,546 College Student Jobs Are Available on Salarship. So they think that Billions of dollars are swirling around college sports, and everyone is getting a piece of the action. And under ordinary principles of antitrust law, it is not evident why college sports should be any different. How about only football and basketball players? A handful of big Maybe as Much as He Loves Playing. Do you think well-established minor-league systems would be attractive to high-school graduates and college athletes less interested in (or ill-prepared for) higher education? It is the latest chapter of an athlete rights movement that has generated It would only be fair to compensate for this loss of knowledge with a decent revenue. However, players lived $778 below the federal poverty line and owed $3,624 in tuition. And under ordinary principles of antitrust law, it is not evident why college sports should be any different. Here Are Some Pros and Cons HuffPost, Should College Athletes Be Paid? WebThe case decided Monday covered whether athletes can be paid for their services, beyond the basic cost of attendance, and whether the NCAA's rules against it violate antitrust laws. They dont know how to manage their money, and there wouldnt be anyone their to guide their financial decisions. A 2009-2010 CDC report found that more than 210,000 injuries are sustained by NCAA student-athletes each year. Consider the pro position of the National College Players Association that paying college athletes is a civil rights issue. Meanwhile, 18 states have NIL laws in place. We do have hungry nights that we dont have enough money to get food in. While college athletes' payments are a controversial topic, their hard work and health must be fairly compensated no matter what, and a salary seems to be the best way for it. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. Its hard to ignore the racist undertones when the financial benefit to these institutions is based on the unpaid work of young Black men. [22], The NCAA requires players to have health insurance but does not pay for that insurance and can refuse to pay medical expenses for sports injuries, some of which can have life-long consequences for the players bodies and career opportunities. As John Thelin, PhD, Research Professor of History of Higher Education & Public Policy at the University of Kentucky, explained, paying salaries to players will increase [athletic] program expenditures without necessarily increasing revenues [and] a handful of powerful programs will stand to gain in competition for athletic talent simply because they can afford to pay salaries. The NCAA limits in-season practice time to 20 hours a week, but a 2008 NCAA report shows that in-season student-athletes commonly spent upward of 30 and 40 hours a week engaged in athletic activities.. That's why some colleges, such as the University of Southern California and Stanford University, opposed the bill. It would eliminate the line between amateur and professional sports. A 2017 study found that 91% of former college football players who had died had CTE, a degenerative brain disease linked to dementia. 2021, the NCAA was composed of [n]early half a million college athletes [who] make up the 19,886 teams that send more than 57,661 participants to compete each year in the NCAAs 90 championships in 24 sports across 3 divisions.. Pros: The ruling is a massive win for student athletes, of course. It is no surprise that doing sports consumes a solid number of things. Universities best positioned to pay athletes top dollar would win bidding wars and recruiting battles against institutions with limited budgets. Group licensing deals in theory can allow lesser-known players to reap the benefits of appearing alongside a well-known player. College athletes generate billions of dollars per year for schools, media outlets, and corporate All comments are moderated by the Learning Network staff, but please keep in mind that once your comment is accepted, it will be made public. There are a number of great reasons to pay college athletes, many of which will not only improve the lives of student-athletes, but also improve the product on the field and in the arena. That means athletes who are exceptionally skilled at not-so-popular sports, such as swimming and softball, would not be given a chance to complete their studies through sponsorship and scholarship programs by the NCAA. If theres money to provide college coaches with lavish seven-figure salaries (especially at public institutions), why shouldnt there be funds to pay college athletes? 3, 2021), John Thelin, Paying College Athletes, insidehighered.com, Feb. 12, 2018, NCAA, Estimated Probability of Competing in Professional Athletics, ncaa.org, Apr. The main argument in favor of paying college athletes is that they bring in a large net amount of revenue to their schools. The issue is that college sports are not just about athletes competing against each other anymore. Whats the Difference Between Great Britain and the United Kingdom? In 2019, the NCAA reported $18.9 billion in total athletics revenue. According to data released by the NCAA, 90% of Division I athletes enrolled in 2013 earned a degree within six years. California was the first state to pass a NIL (name, image, and likeness) law, which takes effect on Jan. 1, 2023. The rest of it gets spread out to the coach, who makes $8 million a year, to the assistant coaches, who make as much as a half-million dollars a year. Like other college students, athletes need spending money. Colin Cowherd states, I dont think paying all college athletes is great; not every college is loaded, and most 19-year-olds (are) gonna spend itand lets be honest, theyre gonna spend it on weed and kicks!. In fiscal year 2019, the collective expenses of the 65 Power Five schoolsthe largest and richest Division I schools in the NCAAexceeded revenue by $7 million. All rights reserved. Not likely from the school itself. Players may stay longer To back up the last point, players wouldnt have to leave school early and would still be able to pursue an education while taking care of their family back home. Writing an essay on whether college athletes should or shouldnt be paid? - SmartAsset College athletes work hard and make lots of money for their colleges. This article was published on January 21, 2022, at Britannicas ProCon.org, a nonpartisan issue-information source. On the opposing side, many argue that there are major differences between intercollegiate athletics and professional sports First of all, they should not get paid as very few college players are taking the spotlight. about whether the NCAA is violating antitrust laws by restricting college athletes compensation. This isnt something new. Some are calling him the next LeBron James. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Exactly who gets paid and how much? And ever since that 1984 decision, courts have been relying on that language to try to interpret antitrust law applies to all NCAA restrictions, including player compensation. [15], On June 21, 2021, the US Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the NCAA cannot ban certain payments to student athletes under the premise of maintaining amateurism. That means all of its income should be spent on collegiate sports organizations. 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