Republican U.S. Sen Ted Cruz of Texas has introduced bi-partisan legislation with Sen. Maria Cantwell (D–WA) designed to address a series of issues currently plaguing college athletics. Cruz and Cantwell are the chairman and ranking member, respectively, of the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee.
The Protect College Sports Act of 2026 establishes a national framework for college athletics, designed to unify standards across conferences and institutions.
Its centerpiece is the name, image, and likeness (NIL) compensation rule, which guarantees student‑athletes the unrestricted right to earn money from endorsements, sponsorships, and personal branding. Schools and the NCAA cannot limit these opportunities, though athletes must disclose NIL deals exceeding $600. Institutions may participate in NIL arrangements under regulated conditions, ensuring fair‑market value and transparency through a national NIL database.
The proposed measure differentiates between student-athletes earning outside income through traditional advertising, revenue sharing payments directly from universities, and what Cruz called “Fake NIL deals.”
“What [this legislation] doesn’t allow is a booster handing a bag of cash to an athlete in a dark alley,” Cruz recently stated on his Verdict podcast.
“It draws the line between real NIL and fake boosters trying to game the system.”
The bill also introduces provisions for Collective Media Rights, creating a limited anti-trust exemption to allow the NCAA to sell media rights as a whole rather than on a conference or school basis.
