This week, the Department of Justice announced that the NCAA has agreed to drop a transfer rule that’s been in place and debated ever since it moved to athletes being allowed to transfer one time without penalty.
Basically, after an athlete transfers one time, it cannot do so again without potentially sitting out one year as a penalty. It was designed to curb full out free agency of collegiate athletes even with the landscape of college athletics changing more towards a pay for play model.
The NCAA reportedly agreed to drop the rule rather than face a civil lawsuit against it by the Justice Department, ten states, and the District of Columbia. Prosecutors argued that the rule kept Division I student athletes from taking advantage of athletic opportunities. The complaint also alleged the rule “was anticompetitive because it deterred college athletes from challenging anticompetitive rules in court,” according to a news release from the Justice Department.
The proposed deal would prohibit the NCAA from enforcing the transfer rule now and in the future. It would also provide an extra year of eligibility for certain athletes that are still in school and lost a year because of the enforced rule.
The NCAA’s transfer restrictions are over. A consent decree was entered in federal court in WV, ending the NCAA’s ability to enforce Transfer Eligibility rules. https://t.co/tShGMEHj9z
— Jay Bilas (@JayBilas) May 31, 2024
“Free from anticompetitive rules that unfairly limit their mobility, Division I college athletes will now be able to choose the institutions that best meet their academic, personal and professional development needs,” Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter said in the release. “This resolution is a testament to the benefits of federal and state enforcers working together to ensure free markets and fair competition for all Americans.”
We’ll have more on this as further news becomes available.
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