National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston
Issues
Do the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s restrictions on “non-cash education-related benefits” for college athletes violate federal antitrust law under the Sherman Act?
This case asks the Supreme Court to decide whether the National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”) eligibility rules, which limit student-athletes from receiving compensation in order to preserve “amateurism,” violate federal antitrust law under Section 1 of the Sherman Act. The Sherman Act proscribes restrictions on commerce or trade among the several states. The student-athletes assert that the NCAA’s compensation restrictions, under a “rule of reason” standard of federal antitrust law, are unlawful restraints of trade that generate anticompetitive effects. In response, the NCAA argues that the challenged compensation system passes muster under the “rule of reason” standard because it preserves a clear line of demarcation between amateur college sports and professional sports while promoting socially important non-commercial values. This case has implications for intercollegiate athletics, joint ventures, and antitrust law.
Questions as Framed for the Court by the Parties
Whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit erroneously held, in conflict with decisions of other circuits and general antitrust principles, that the National Collegiate Athletic Association eligibility rules regarding compensation of student-athletes violate federal antitrust law.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”) governs intercollegiate sports by administering rules related to its member schools’ student
Edited by
Additional Resources
- Ngoc Pham Hulbig & Joel Mitnick, Supreme Court to Weigh in College Sports: The Intersection of Antitrust and “Amateurism”, JD Supra (Dec. 21, 2020).
- Steve Berkowitz, Supreme Court Says It Will Hear Case Challenging NCAA’s Athlete-compensation Rules, USA Today (Dec. 16, 2020).