College sports keep getting more contentious. They’ve always been so on the field or court, but now the action is just as hot in the legal arena.
In today’s Martin Center article, economics professor William Anderson writes about a new lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletics Association. The case was filed by members of the 1983 basketball championship team from NC State. What is at issue is the NCAA’s use of pictures from the game, which the players argue is their property.
The case is emblematic of the change that has swept through college sports.
Anderson explains:
One way to make sense of the changes now underway is to model the NCAA as an industry that is transitioning from being heavily regulated to one where competition is leading to new changes in the rules of operation. For example, students could not have sponsorships in the past or be paid for anything tied to their sports accomplishments, as the NCAA adhered to a strict amateur code. Of course, that code applied only to athletes, not the NCAA and its officials. The prohibition on athletes receiving compensation other than approved scholarships was not only due to an alleged love of amateur sports but existed so that the huge financial gains NCAA events enjoyed could be directed to the universities and the NCAA itself.
The NCAA’s monopoly is breaking up and its officials are frantic, as their future looks very questionable.
Anderson likes what is going on, writing:
The NC State lawsuit must be seen in the context of everything else going on with the NCAA. Not long ago, the NCAA ruled college sports with an iron fist, but, as the rules change, college-sports revenue will be directed away from the NCAA itself and toward athletes, coaches, and administrators. I should emphasize that, while we can make some predictions, nonetheless what we see is a work in progress. One assumes that the former Wolfpack players’ lawsuit, if successful, will further alter the collegiate-sports landscape.