Are College Athletes the Next Fashion Star?

As fashion brands continue to recruit celebrities and influencers to promote their products, one group that has historically remained out of their reach are the NCAA collegiate athletes. But that all changed in light of recent Supreme Court decisions and the dramatic shift in the NCAA’s position. College athletes will become important representatives of brands, including their own, as they are now allowed to be paid for the use of their name, likeness, or image. Understanding these new rules promises to be a difficult task for lawyers, business executives, and administrators in the fashion industry and elsewhere. This article provides an overview of the new, fast-growing industry.

NCAA Historical Restrictions on Certain Types of Athletes’ Compensation Has Been Removed. Throughout its history, the NCAA has maintained a strict amateur code against collegiate athletes, seeking to enforce, though not always successfully, a clear and deliberate distinction between students and professionals. The NCAA, which was founded in 1906 and took its current name in 1910, has organizational regulations that prohibit student athletes from receiving any compensation for their services. Offenses were commonplace even during the first half of the 20th century, and it wasn’t until the 1948 Sanity Code that NCAA policy allowed athletic scholarships or financial aid to athletes in an early attempt to regulate corruption.