Protect College Sports Act of 2026

This bill would establish federal requirements for name, image, and likeness (NIL) agreements, including a mandate that student athletes report compensation over $600 and a 5% cap on agent fees. It proposes to codify revenue-sharing limits from the House settlement, grant athletes one transfer without losing eligibility, and provide a limited antitrust exemption for schools and conferences that collectively sell media rights. Additionally, the legislation would prohibit institutions from providing compensation that circumvents revenue-sharing caps and would restrict football personnel from changing head coaching positions mid-season.

This bill directly affects college student athletes, who must report name, image, and likeness (NIL) compensation exceeding $600 and are granted one transfer without losing eligibility. It also impacts higher education institutions, athletic conferences, and intercollegiate athletic associations like the NCAA by regulating their ability to restrict NIL agreements and providing a limited antitrust exemption for media rights pooling. Additionally, the legislation affects sports agents through new state registration requirements and a 5% cap on endorsement contract fees.

• Protection of student athlete NIL agreements. Prohibits educational institutions, conferences, and athletic associations from restricting student athletes from entering into name, image, or likeness (NIL) agreements, subject to certain limitations.
• Reporting and regulation of NIL compensation and agents. Requires student athletes to report NIL compensation exceeding $600 to their institutions and mandates that agents register with a state and limit their endorsement contract fees to 5%.
• Student athlete transfer and coaching restrictions. Grants student athletes one transfer without the loss of athletic eligibility and prevents football personnel from accepting a head coaching position at a different school during the same season.
• Revenue sharing limits and circumvention prohibitions. Codifies permanent limits on revenue sharing with student athletes based on the House settlement, includes annual inflation adjustments, and prohibits entities from providing compensation that circumvents these limits.
• Limited antitrust exemption for media rights. Establishes a limited antitrust exemption for institutions or conferences that jointly agree to transfer sports telecasting rights to third parties, provided at least 75% of Football Bowl Subdivision institutions participate.

The bill codifies and makes permanent specific provisions of the court-approved settlement in the case In re College Athlete NIL Litigation, including limits on revenue sharing with student athletes. It also establishes a limited antitrust exemption for institutions and conferences regarding the collective transfer of sports telecasting rights.

This bill seeks to establish a national framework for student-athlete name, image, and likeness (NIL) agreements while codifying revenue-sharing limits and transfer eligibility rules. It also aims to provide institutions and conferences with limited antitrust exemptions for the collective sale of sports media rights.