The Fair Pay to Play Act was recently pushed forward and signed into effect by Gov. Gavin Newsom from California. This will allow college athletes compensation for their name, image and likeness through things such as endorsements, sponsorships, autograph signings and other similar deals, according to the bill.
With much backlash from the NCAA and various universities — not only in California, but across the United States — this issue has been talked about substantially. This creates very polarizing views among those inside and outside the collegiate athletic world.
The intent behind this act is understandable. Athletes should be paid for their name solely because it’s their name. The work they do with sponsors and through autograph signings should be compensated.
However, only brands that want to work with the athletes should compensate them, not the school or the state. Although the bill does outline this fact, this mentality easily lends way to a slippery slope.
Giving athletes salaries is not far off from allowing the athletes to be paid. I understand athletes put a lot of work into their careers, but so does any student in college. If it ever escalated to the point of giving athletes a straight salary, no one would benefit. Whenever extra money is coming in, either tuition and/or taxes will go up accordingly.
It is not fair to have everyone else front the bill just so these collegiate athletes can get paid. Many of them already get a free ride or substantially better scholarships than the average student to play while they are in college.
It is ridiculous to expect anyone other than the brands wanting to support these athletes to pay. Many smaller schools won’t have the financial resources to pay every athlete. If one athlete is paid, then so should every athlete for every sport. It’s just not feasible.
Athletes should be allowed payment if a brand reaches out to them and wants to sponsor them because it’s their name and image. They’re doing the work and they should get paid. But the mere fact they play a sport does not warrant them getting paid — they already receive scholarships for this very reason.
The sponsorships are separate from them competing for the school, and they should not be punished if someone reaches out to them separately for a brand deal or sponsorship.
Collegiate athletes should not receive a salary because they are not professionals — they’re amateurs, but if a brand wants to use their name, they should be compensated.
Within the current restrictions of the Fair Pay to Play Act, it could work. It’s fair to all in the current situation. Although it blurs the line between collegiate and professional athletes, it gives the opportunity for athletes to receive compensation for extra work they do outside of their scholarships.
The law will not take effect until Jan. 1, 2023, so there is still time to see if other states will follow in its footsteps by creating similar bills. There needs to be a line drawn regarding this issue, and these bills walk a thin line between brands paying for endorsement deals and taxpayers paying for every collegiate athlete’s salary.
Nicole Hindberg can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @HindbergNicole