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| The NCAA, the main governing body of US collegiate sports, hosts 90 championships in 24 sports, which see more than 57,000 total participants each year.(Photo by= Getty Images) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] The US Supreme Court has ruled in favor of student-athletes in a compensation row with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). BBC reported that during a unanimous decision, the court said limits on education-related benefits for athletes cannot be enforced.
Under current NCAA rules, students cannot be paid, and scholarship money is capped at the cost of attendance. The NCAA defended the rules as necessary to protect the distinction between amateur and professional sport. College sports generated $18.9bn (£13.6bn) in 2019, according to the NCAA, but athletes are unpaid. The current and former athletes who filed the case had said the restrictions on compensation amounted to an unlawful restraint of trade.
On Monday, the high court agreed, ruling that the NCAA's curbs on non-cash payments, including benefits like computers, musical instruments, academic awards, and paid internships, violates a federal law called the Sherman Antitrust Act - meant to outlaw monopolies in business. The student-athletes involved in the suit were members of top-tier basketball and American football teams, which generate the most revenue for the NCAA. The court's ruling did not address the larger - and contentious - issue of whether student-athletes can be paid. NCAA President Mark Emmert said in a statement that the organization remains committed to "working with Congress to chart a path forward".
