The "Protect College Sports Act of 2026" addresses name, image, and likeness protections for student-athletes, athlete agent responsibilities, academic and medical coverage, and establishes an Office of the Student Athlete Ombudsman. The bill also encompasses eligibility criteria, revenue share cap extension, whistleblower protection, health and safety standards, and rules regarding intercollegiate sports broadcasting, conference mergers, and media rights. It aims to ensure student-athletes' equitable treatment, fair competition, and market-level broadcast access for college football and basketball. The bill also clarifies terms related to collegiate athletics, protections for women's and Olympic sports, and seeks to regulate recruitment practices and liability for intercollegiate athletic associations.
Protect College Sports Act of 2026
This bill establishes requirements for name, image, or likeness (NIL) agreements for college student athletes and provides a limited antitrust exemption for schools and conferences to pool and sell certain college sports media rights. The requirements address elements of the court-approved agreement to settle In re College Athlete NIL Litigation (i.e., House settlement).
First, the bill statutorily prohibits institutions, conferences, or interstate intercollegiate athletic associations (e.g., the National Collegiate Athletic Association [NCAA]) from restricting student athletes from entering NIL agreements (subject to specified limitations). Students must report to their institution NIL compensation greater than $600.
The bill requires agents to register with a state and caps agent endorsement contract fees at 5%.
The bill also provides student athletes with one transfer without losing athletic eligibility and restricts football personnel from becoming the head football coach at a different institution during the same season.
Further, the bill prohibits institutions, conferences, or specified entities acting for the benefit of an institution from providing athletes with compensation that circumvents the limit on sharing revenue with student athletes established under the House settlement. The bill also makes the limit permanent and provides for an annual inflation adjustment.
Additionally, the bill establishes (subject to specified conditions) a limited antitrust exemption for institutions or conferences that form joint agreements to transfer their sports telecasting rights to a third party. Such an agreement requires participation from at least 75% of the institutions in the Football Bowl Subdivision.