Collegiate athletes throughout Texas are going to be able to profit from businesses outside of the NCAA that want to use their name, likeness, or image. Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed this new law Monday evening . Many other states have already signed laws that allow their college athletes to be paid from outside businesses. California was the first state to lift that ban when they approved the change back in 2019. To be clear, collegiate athletes still aren’t able to gain money from the actual NCAA, however they can gain money from outside sources (businesses) that aren’t associated with the NCAA. The only money athletes can receive from schools is compensation in the form of a scholarship. Some of the lawmakers expressed concerns that college sports needed to be played “for the love of the game”. Other supporters stated that college athletes deserve to profit from the huge industry that they are a part of. What it comes down to is that Universities are gaining a severe amount of money off of their student athletes and it makes sense for these athletes to be able to share in that wealth.

A big part of the signed bill is that collegiate athletes are able to hire agents to represent them in the process of doing deals with businesses. Hiring an agent requires athletes to take a financial literacy course during their freshman and junior year of school. Personally, I think this is a great requirement to have. It’s important to understand how to manage your money early in life. It’s something we don’t learn enough about in high school, so requiring the course in college is only beneficial. Student athletes will not be allowed to do deals with businesses that are involved in alcohol, drugs, gambling, and sex.