The times, they are a'changing

Collective bargaining is proposed as a shield against antitrust liability in college sports. Scroll down in this item from The Athletic (NY Times):

One league overseeing college football’s highest level. No more conferences as we’ve known them. Playoff berths being decided solely on the field. Promotion and relegation for smaller schools. Players being paid directly. NIL and the transfer portal, managed. A group of influential leaders wants to make all this happen soon — and they are pitching it as the best way forward for a sport they believe needs saving.

Several college presidents, Roger Goodell’s primary lieutenant at the NFL and some of sports’ top executives have devised a plan — dubbed by outsiders as a “Super League” — to completely transform college football, those involved in the group “College Sports Tomorrow” (CST) told The Athletic. Although the plan has drawn skepticism from within the sport’s current institutions, the people behind the ideas believe they must be implemented...

Thus far, the group is struggling to gain traction with the schools that would play in their proposed “Super League.” The ACC board of directors heard a presentation from the group in February. However, planned dinners with administrators from the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 all were called off. Spokespersons for the Big Ten and SEC said commissioners Petitti and Greg Sankey, respectively, have not met with Perna’s group.

Leagues have been hesitant and canceled meetings so as not to upset their current broadcast partners, including ESPN and Fox, according to one executive briefed on the commissioners’ thoughts. Chief among the obstacles this new venture faces are the billions of dollars in TV deals that all the top conferences have locked in with the major networks: ESPN/ABC, Fox, NBC and CBS...

College administrators are particularly concerned about the House v. NCAA class-action suit in Northern California, seeking NIL revenue denied to athletes prior to 2021 rule changes. If the plaintiffs are successful, the NCAA and the power conferences could be on the hook for billions in damages. The House case is one of several potentially crippling federal antitrust suits related to athlete employment rights and NIL compensation... 

While the CST model would eliminate the longtime conference structure for football, it would create one entity to negotiate with a prospective union that would represent the players on NIL, transfer portal and salary structure rules. This embrace of collective bargaining could allow it to avoid the antitrust issues that have limited the NCAA’s ability to enforce its own rules...

Full story at https://theathletic.com/5383639/2024/04/03/college-football-super-league-cst-realignment/.