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June 28, 2021 By: Karl Wimer

Cartoon: Supreme Court ruling opens a can o’ worms

‘Opening a Can o’ Worms’

A landmark legal ruling was made on June 21, when the Supreme Court
ruled for student athletes and against the NCAA in the ongoing battle
around the growing treasure chest of riches that college sports (and in
particular, football and basketball) annually generates.

The ruling itself is fairly narrow: student athletes can now receive
education-related payments outside of their normal scholarships.

But it is notable because the ruling was unanimous (when does that
happen anymore with the Supreme Court?), and opens the door for a large
number of other changes, including use of name, image and likeness to
make money by signing endorsement deals or making personal appearances.

The long-running central argument is a hugely sticky issue, with a long
list of pros and cons that have been battled out in the courts and in
the news for years. There is a reason big, thorny problems like this
don’t easily get solved.

And appropriately, one solution often drives a host of side effects; or
opening a giant can of worms that manifests itself down the road. Most
colleges do not in fact make enormous amounts of money from sports, and
athletic departments struggling to make ends meet aren’t thrilled with
the idea of having to also pay student athletes down the road.

After basketball and football, there are no true revenue generating
sports. There is a very real threat that the timetable for the chopping
block moves up for these other sports. When the majority of college
athletes don’t play in the big two sports, this is no small concern.

The rich teams with the biggest television contracts and sponsorship
opportunities stand to gain the most from these changes. Expect another
interesting development: bidding wars for athletes. Again, it’s hard to see
how the smaller schools can effectively compete with the new set of rules.