The judge ruled that college athletes should be able to get certain benefits….
BUT?
NOT get paid outright…..
This has been a contentious issue for college athletes that generate hundreds of millions of dollar for their schools based on their performances and are forbidden to collect almost any of that money by the N.C.A.A…….
A federal judge on Friday, in a closely watched case, opened the way for college football and basketball players to receive more compensation than they do now, but narrowly limited the benefits to expenses “related to education.”
The ruling was somewhat of a victory for the athletes but fell well short of their goal of eliminating the N.C.A.A.’s cap on their compensation, which the organization has argued is vital to maintaining a semblance of amateurism in college sports.
In the ruling in Federal District Court in Oakland, Calif., Judge Claudia Wilken determined that amateurism rules barring payment beyond scholarships and certain related costs of education violate antitrust law.
Schools, she said, can compensate athletes for education-related expenses such as postgraduate scholarships, tutoring, study abroad, and computers and musical instruments. Individual conferences could cap these payments.
But in a ruling of more than 100 pages, Judge Wilken also supported the N.C.A.A.’s claim that students should not become professionals while playing for school teams.
“The court does credit the importance to consumer demand of maintaining a distinction between college sports and professional sports,” she said in Friday’s ruling. “In addition to the fact that college sports are played by students actually attending the college, student-athletes are not paid the very large salaries that characterize the professional sports leagues that many student-athletes aspire to.”
Still, rather than settle the matter, the decision seemed likely to continue the debate. She stayed the ruling pending appeals….
image…flypapermagazine