CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — The NIL era of college athletics is getting another big twist, this time courtesy of Title IX.

The Department of Education determined in a memo that Title IX applies to name, image, and likeness (NIL) payments to college athletes. Title IX is a federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in education programs.

“It’s important not only for advancing the interests of girls and women, but also for improving the overall interest in sports,” said University of Illinois professor Michael LeRoy.

As the law is currently interpreted, it means schools will have to proportionally distribute NIL finances across genders. LeRoy is weighing in on how this could end up working.

“I couldn’t imagine, and nobody could imagine, the explosion in NIL money that has occurred,” LeRoy said.

Name, image, and likeness has changed the very landscape of college athletics. Now, Title IX is throwing another curveball into how college sports might operate.

LeRoy is a professor at U of I’s School of Labor Employment Relations and College of Law.
He’s also been studying NIL since before its inception in 2021.

“The average total NIL pay for men was about $171,000. For women, it was $16,000. Nobody should be surprised to see there is this kind of disparity in NIL money,” LeRoy said “But now, with the OCR guidance, the regulation is telling schools that they’ll be accountable for equalizing these benefits.”

This decision was reached when NIL money was equated to athletic scholarships and financial assistance, both of which are subject to Title IX regulations. If the law is interpreted this way under the incoming Trump administration, schools would need to find ways to disperse NIL money.

“If your school is 50/50, male/female, then it’s [distributed] equally. But if your school is 60% male, 40% female, proportionately, your NIL money has to be 60% male, 40% female, or at least 40% females,” LeRoy said. “It has to be proportional to the enrollment of the general student population.”

Most payments are handled through collectives with third-party donors, with football and men’s basketball as the main moneymakers.

“It’ll be a hard thing for athletic departments to adjust to because the NIL market favors men over women,” LeRoy said. “It’s not a matter of the athletic departments creating this disparity as much as it is the fans, and the donor is money flooding into football and men’s basketball.”

With the NCAA looking at possible legislation, colleges seeking advantages, and athletes eager to get paid, LeRoy said the future of NIL is more unpredictable than the sports themselves.

“It’s a phenomenon that is hard to understand and even harder to predict,” LeRoy said.

It’s not clear at this point if the Department of Education will interpret the law the same way with a new presidential administration coming in next week. This is something LeRoy and other experts are keeping an eye on.