Overview
- Senators Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell unveiled the Protect College Sports Act on Wednesday, proposing federal rules to curb transfer volatility, rein in NIL deals and restore competitive balance in college athletics.
- The bill would give the NCAA limited antitrust protection to enforce eligibility and roster rules, allow one immediate transfer without penalty, impose a five-year eligibility window, and restrict multiple transfers with potential sit-out requirements.
- Sponsors would tighten NIL and agent oversight by requiring disclosure of deals over $600, capping agent commissions at 5 percent, and expanding the College Sports Commission’s power to reject deals it finds untethered to legitimate business purposes.
- The proposal also allows conditional pooling of conference media rights to deter mega-conferences, bars hiring coaches during an opponent’s season, mandates five years of school-covered medical bills after competition ends, and seeds a catastrophic-injury fund.
- Athlete-advocacy groups have united in strong opposition, power conferences have given cautious or mixed responses, and legal observers say the bill could reshape or affect ongoing litigation as it moves to the Senate Commerce Committee and possible hearings.