US Senate passes Protect College Sports Act in 77-22 vote to regulate transfers and NIL

Senate passage and legislative background

The United States Senate passed the Protect College Sports Act on Monday night in a bipartisan 77-22 vote, seeking to establish a national regulatory framework for collegiate athletics. Sponsored by Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz of Texas and ranking member Maria Cantwell of Washington, the bill followed more than a year of bipartisan negotiations. Support for the package grew after endorsements from the NCAA, college athletic programs, and President Donald Trump, who urged passage on Truth Social on September 17. Promotional campaigns supporting the measure also featured television advertisements by former Alabama football coach Nick Saban. Cruz argued that congressional intervention was required to establish standard rules across the country.

It would be nice if college sports could somehow magically fix itself, but this is a matter of law, federal law, and it is only Congress that can fix it.

Athlete transfers, compensation, and eligibility rules

The measure replaces a patchwork of state laws with uniform federal standards for student-athlete compensation and movement. Under the legislation, athletes receive a five-year eligibility window that begins upon initial college enrollment or when an athlete turns 19 years old. The bill permits one transfer without penalty, reinstating a requirement to sit out one competitive season for subsequent school changes. In addition to regulating name, image, and likeness contracts and capping agent fees, the bill establishes federal medical, healthcare, and scholarship protections. It also formalizes revenue-sharing rules by capping direct institutional payments to current student-athletes at approximately $50 million per school, while leaving ongoing court cases unaffected.

Conference realignment caps and antitrust exemptions

To regulate realignment among collegiate athletic programs, the legislation amends the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 to restrict athletic conferences. Leagues generating more than $700 million in annual revenue (the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, and SEC) face a membership cap of 20 schools. The Big Ten currently holds 18 members, the ACC has 17, and the SEC and Big 12 each maintain 16 institutions. Under a six-year transitional rule, any Power Four program seeking to join another Power Four conference must spend three years as an independent, reduced from five years in earlier drafts. The legislation prohibits outside commercial entities from forming independent super leagues and grants the NCAA, conferences, and universities limited antitrust exemptions to enforce eligibility rules.

Congressional debate and House outlook

Opposition to the measure included 22 senators, organized labor groups, athlete advocacy organizations, and the NAACP. Critics argued that the legislation curtails athlete financial freedom and transfer flexibility while leaving multimillion-dollar head coaching contracts and mobility unregulated. Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey led opposition on the Senate floor on Monday, urging lawmakers to reject the measure.

Is this really what we should be spending our time on? I beg my colleagues not to do this. It's wrong.

Negotiators secured passage after fending off unionization provisions and ensuring the bill did not supersede state laws on transgender athletes. The bill now heads to the House of Representatives, where lawmakers remain on recess until after the November midterm elections.