Proposed Law Would Allow College Athletes To Profit From Endorsements, Ad Campaigns
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — LeBron James tweeted Thursday in support of a proposed California law that would allow college athletes to profit from endorsements and ad campaigns.
California can change the game. This is only right waaaayy overdue. #morethananathlete
— LeBron James (@KingJames) September 5, 2019
The bill, SB 206, would require California universities to allow student athletes to accept endorsement deals and advertising campaigns without that money interfering with scholarship or eligibility to compete. The bill would also allow college athletes to retain attorneys and agents. The bill, which already passed the senate and is currently slated for a third read in the assembly, has already caused controversy — Stanford University, the University of Southern California, the University of California Los Angeles and the National Collegiate Athletic Association have already spoken out against the bill.
The president of the NCAA even reportedly threatened to bar California schools from championships if the bill becomes law.
Currently, the NCAA does not allow college scholarship athletes to profit from endorsement deals or from campaigns that use their image or likeness.
But supporters of the bill — including James — are pushing back. In a YouTube video mocking the NCAA, student athletes are shown with their faces blurred as soon as they select a baseball hat representing their chosen university.
"I agree to give up my rights, to be exploited for profit," one person in the satirical video said.
As for students at USC, some felt it was only fair for student athletes to be able to make money outside of their scholarship packages.
"The amount of wealth that they're generating by them playing is more than the amount of benefits they're getting as athletes," one said.