Breaking Down the NCAA’s New NIL Tournament: How Colleges and Athletes are Benefiting

The NCAA’s recent ruling that allows college athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness has paved the way for a new college basketball tournament. According to CBS Sports, Las Vegas will host an eight-team Thanksgiving weekend tournament featuring programs from the NCAA’s top conferences. Each participating program will receive $1 million to distribute among its players.

Schools such as Alabama, Houston, Notre Dame, Oregon, Rutgers, San Diego State, and Texas A&M are expected to participate in the tournament. Players involved in the tournament would be required to engage in off-court activities to earn sponsorship money. The event organizers have assured universities that the tournament will operate within NCAA guidelines.

One of the coaches from a participating school expressed enthusiasm for the opportunity, stating that it would be unwise not to participate if invited. While schools cannot directly pay their players for their name, image or likeness, many have established collectives to raise funds on behalf of the athletes.

The NCAA’s decision to allow players to engage in sponsorship opportunities signified a major shift in the organization’s stance on amateurism which had previously been strictly enforced. With the rise of player transfers due to this change and NIL deals specifically for basketball and football players reaching millions of dollars, it is clear that monetization is now a top priority for athletes when selecting schools.