Players associations from the NFL, NHL, NBA, MLB and MLS on Monday released a joint letter opposing “any antitrust exemption or legal liability shield from legislation regulating college athletics.”
The letter comes as the Energy and Commerce Committee considers the Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements (SCORE) Act.
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The letter outlines what the associations see as dangers with the antitrust exemption, noting the following:
- Whatever progress the athletes have made has been a result of their use of the antitrust laws. The SCORE Act would take that weapon away from them.
- Granting an antitrust exemption to the NCAA and its members gives the green light for the organization and schools to collude and work against student athletes.
- Historically, antitrust exemptions have been used to set prices, limit wages, and restrict access to opportunities provided by open markets, all while shielding abuse from legal recourse.
- It is not hard to imagine a situation where NCAA and its members collude to restrict revenue sharing and deny student athletes fair compensation with the confidence of immunity against legal action. Indeed, they have been doing exactly that for decades!
The letter goes on to note that "only two industries have an antitrust exemption in the entire United States of America: railroads and Major League Baseball (partial)," adding that the "NCAA should not have a blank check to impose their will on the financial future of over 500,000 college athletes."
