The United State Supreme Court unanimously decided earlier today that the NCAA can not enforce rules that limit education-related benefits, which could pave the way for student athletes to soon be paid. While the case doesn’t decide on salaries, it will help determine if schools can offer student athletes tutoring, study abroad and internships.
The case was brought about by several former collegiate athletes, including West Virginia’s Shawne Alston.
Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the Court’s opinion:
“Put simply, this suit involves admitted horizontal price fixing in a market where the defendants exercise monopoly control,” Gorsuch wrote.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh stated that the NCAA is essentially “acting above the law”:
“Nowhere else in America can businesses get away with agreeing not to pay their workers a fair market rate on the theory that their product is defined by not paying their workers a fair market rate,” Kavanaugh wrote. “And under ordinary principles of antitrust law, it is not evident why college sports should be any different. The NCAA is not above the law.”
