Settlement between NCAA, Power Five allows schools to pay players

Power Five programs will soon be allowed to pay their players, following a settlement between the NCAA and its five major conferences.

College sports’ governing body, the NCAA, will pay more than $2.7 billion in damages to past and current athletes over the next decade, according to USA TODAY Sports. The move comes following the SEC and Pac-12’s agreement to the deal that settles three pending federal antitrust cases.

“Ecstatic to get this done,” Steve Berman, one of the plaintiffs’ lead attorneys, told USA TODAY Sports as he said he was transmitting a letter to the court overseeing the cases. “When we started this, I never dreamed of this day. It’s a revolutionary moment in college sports.”

This settlement moves college sports into a new era, which began with the introduction of name, image and likeness compensation a few years ago.

The next step is getting preliminary and final approval from U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken, the former of which should come in the next 30 to 45 days. The entire process could take months.

Athletes who played as far back as 2016 are eligible to receive a share of the settlement payout. A salary cap of sorts will be put in place with projections of around $20 million.

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