15 U.S.C. 7801(1)changedby S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
(1) Agency contract. The term "agency contract" means an oral or written agreementa written agreement in which a student athlete authorizes a person to negotiate or solicit on behalf of the student athlete a professional sports contract or an endorsement contract.
The bill says: in paragraph (1), by striking "an oral or written agreement" and inserting "a written agreement";
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801(5)addedby S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
The bill says: in paragraph (5), by inserting before the period the following: "and includes any name, image, and likeness agreement as defined in section 100 of the Protect College Sports Act of 2026";
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801renumberedby S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
The bill says: by redesignating paragraphs (6) through (9) as paragraphs (7) through (10), respectively; and
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801added (6)by S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
(6) Intercollegiate athletic association.— The term intercollegiate athletic association has the meaning given that term in section 100 of Protect College Sports Act of 2026
The bill says: by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801(a)(2)changedby S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
The bill says: in paragraph (2), by striking "or" at the end;
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801(a)(3)changedby S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
The bill says: in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801(a)added (4)by S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
(4) enter into an agency contract or represent a student athlete in a manner that violates section 9;(5) charge a student athlete a fee in connection with an endorsement contract that exceeds 5 percent of the value of the endorsement contract;(6) enter into an agency contract with an athlete for a term that extends beyond the eligibility of the student athlete to participate in intercollegiate sport;(7) make any materially false, deceptive, or fraudulent representation as an athlete agent, including any materially false, deceptive, or fraudulent statement to a student athlete or prospective student athlete that misrepresents the existence, nature, or value of a name, image, or likeness opportunity the athlete agent can arrange on behalf of the student athlete or prospective student athlete through recruitment or transfer to an institution (as defined in section 100 of the Protect College Sports Act of 2026); or(8) make a materially false, deceptive, or fraudulent statement in the application for registration as an athlete agent.
The bill says: by adding at the end the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801(b)(3)changedby S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
The bill says: in subsection (b)(3), by striking "Warning to Student Athlete: If you agree orally or in writing to be represented by an agent now or in the future you may lose your eligibility to compete as a student athlete in your sport.";
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801added 5Aby S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
5A. Private right of action.—(a) In general.— Any current or former student athlete alleging a violation of paragraphs (4) through (8) of section 3(a), section 9, or section 10 may bring a civil action in an appropriate district court of the United States or in an appropriate State court.(b) Relief.— In a civil action brought under subsection (a) in which the plaintiff prevails, the court may award—(1) a declaratory judgment that a name, image, or likeness agreement (as defined in section 100 of the Protect College Sports Act of 2026) or an agency contract, as applicable, is null and void; and(2) actual damages.(c) Attorney’s fees and costs.— In a civil action brought under subsection (a) in which the defendant is not an institution (as defined in section 100 of the Protect College Sports Act of 2026), the court may, in its discretion, award reasonable attorney’s fees and litigation costs.(d) Invalidity of pre-dispute arbitration agreements and pre-dispute joint action waivers.—(1) In general.— Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no pre-dispute arbitration agreement or pre-dispute joint action waiver shall be valid or enforceable against a student athlete with respect to a dispute arising under this Act.(2) Applicability.— Any determination as to whether or how paragraph (1) applies to any dispute shall be made by a court, rather than an arbitrator, without regard to whether the agreement or waiver that is the subject of the dispute purports to delegate such determination to an arbitrator.(3) Definitions.— In this subsection:(A) Pre-dispute arbitration agreement.— The term pre-dispute arbitration agreement means any agreement to arbitrate a dispute that has not arisen at the time of the making of the agreement.(B) Pre-dispute joint-action waiver.— The term pre-dispute joint-action waiver means an agreement, whether or not part of a pre-dispute arbitration agreement, that would prohibit, or waive the right of, one of the parties to the agreement to participate in a joint, class, or collective action in a judicial, arbitral, administrative, or other forum, concerning a dispute that has not yet arisen at the time of the making of the agreement.
The bill says: by inserting after section 5 (15 U.S.C. 7804) the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 7801added 9by S. 4668 Sec. 102(a)
9 Registration of athlete agents and other requirements.—(a) In general.— An athlete agent who seeks to represent a student athlete in an endorsement contract shall—(1) register with a State before representing a student athlete for an endorsement contract; and(2) enter into an agency contract with the student athlete before providing representation in an endorsement contract.(b) Registration established.— An individual is deemed to be registered with a State for purposes of this section if the individual is—(1) a registered professional sports agent with a professional sports league or players association, in good standing; or(2) registered and certified under the All State Uniform Agent Acts in the State in which the agent operates, in good standing.(c) Certification to intercollegiate athletic associations.—(1) Requirement.— An athlete agent that represents a student athlete shall certify to each applicable intercollegiate athletic association that the athlete agent is registered with a State.(2) Prohibition.— It is unlawful for an individual to certify to an intercollegiate athletic association that the individual is an athlete agent if the individual is not registered with a State.(d) Requirements for agency contracts.— To be a valid contract, an agency contract shall—(1) state the name of each party to the contract;(2) state the term of the contract;(3) state the registration information for the athlete agent; and(4) state the fee or commission charged by the athlete agent.10 Endorsement contract requirements.— An endorsement contract made in interstate or foreign commerce is, at the option of the student athlete, void from the inception of such contract if such contract does not satisfy the following requirements:(1) The contract is in writing.(2) The contract plainly states that the student athlete has the right to obtain or retain an athlete agent or legal representation with respect to the contract.(3) The contract contains—(A) a description of services rendered;(B) the names of each party to the contract;(C) the terms of the contract;(D) the amount of compensation to be provided to the student athlete under the contract;(E) a provision specifying the circumstance or event that would result in the termination of the contract due to nonperformance of obligations by the student athlete or other parties to the contract; and(F) a provision specifying that the validity and effectiveness of the contract, and the provision of compensation to the student athlete under the contract, is not conditioned upon any express or implicit requirement that the student athlete enroll or remain enrolled at an institution or reside in a particular location within the United States, unless the party making the contract with the student athlete is an institution, conference, associated entity, or collective affiliated with the institution and the contract is entered into after the student athlete has enrolled at such institution.(4) The contract is not for a term that extends beyond the eligibility of the student athlete to participate in intercollegiate sports.
The bill says: by adding at the end the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 7801)
15 U.S.C. 1291changedby S. 4668 Sec. 202(a)
1 Exemption of certain agreements from antitrust laws.—(a) Professional sports.— The
The bill says: by striking "That the" and inserting the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 1291)
15 U.S.C. 1291added (b)by S. 4668 Sec. 202(a)
(b) College sports.— The antitrust laws, as defined in subsection (a), shall not apply to any joint agreement, by or among institutions engaging in or conducting organized intercollegiate sports, or conferences that have such institutions as members, to form and operate a covered entity that complies with and enforces the requirements of section 5 and sells or otherwise transfers to a third party all or any part of the rights of the institutions or conferences in the sponsored telecasting of the intercollegiate athletic competitions engaged in or conducted by the institutions or conferences.
The bill says: by adding at the end the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 1291)
15 U.S.C. 1294added 5by S. 4668 Sec. 203
5 Requirements for entities selling media rights.—(a) Condition on antitrust exemption.— Section 1(b) shall not apply to any joint agreement entered into by institutions or conferences to form the covered entity unless the covered entity complies with the requirements under this section and section 6.(b) Membership of the covered entity.—(1) Eligible membership.— A joint agreement to form the covered entity shall be comprised of a voluntary association of institutions or conferences that includes, at a minimum, as of the date on which the joint agreement is entered into, not less than 75 percent of the institutions participating in the Football Bowl Subdivision, as defined by Bylaw 20.9.9 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association.(2) Invitation requirement.—(A) In general.— The covered entity shall offer membership on fair and nondiscriminatory terms to each conference and each institution that is in Division I, as defined by Bylaw 20.9 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association as of the date of enactment of the Protect College Sports Act of 2026.(B) Optional participation.— No conference or institution shall be required to join the covered entity or accept an offer under subparagraph (A), but no conference or institution eligible for membership under subparagraph (A) may be refused an invitation to join the covered entity.(c) Voting rights.—(1) In general.—(A) Votes of conferences and institutions.— Subject to subparagraph (C), the covered entity shall—(i) in the bylaws of the covered entity—(I) provide that each member conference or member institution has 1 vote on each type of decision or determination described in paragraph (2); and(II) specify the minimum number of votes required for each type of decision or determination described in paragraph (2); and(ii) require the bylaws to be adopted unanimously by the member conferences and member institutions.(B) Votes of student athletes.— The covered entity shall—(i) for purposes of decisions and determinations described in paragraph (2)(C), designate not fewer than 10 individuals who, as of the date of designation, are student athletes or were student athletes during the preceding 10-year period; and(ii) ensure that each individual designated under clause (i) has 1 vote on a decision or determination described in paragraph (2)(C).(C) Non-voting member conferences.— If a conference and 1 or more of the institutions of the conference are members of the covered entity, the conference shall be a non-voting member of the covered entity.(2) Voting thresholds.—(A) Major decisions.— A major decision, as defined by the bylaws of the covered entity, shall require a vote totaling not less than 2/3 of the member conferences or member institutions exercising their voting rights.(B) Non-major decisions.— A non-major decision, as defined by the bylaws of the covered entity, shall require a vote totaling not less than a majority of the member conferences or member institutions exercising their voting rights.(C) Revenue distributions or changes to voting allocations.— A determination regarding the allocation of collective media rights revenue or a decision to change a voting threshold described in this paragraph shall require a unanimous vote of the member conferences, member institutions, or current or former student athletes exercising their voting rights.(D) Media rights requirement.— A determination of which media rights shall be contributed to the covered entity pursuant to subsection (f) shall require a unanimous vote of the member conferences or member institutions exercising their voting rights.(d) Revenue allocation formula.—(1) Method.— Not less frequently than once each academic year, the covered entity shall distribute the collective media rights revenue among member conferences and member institutions—(A) according to the allocation of collective media rights revenue most recently determined in accordance with subsection (c)(2)(C); and(B) in accordance with the requirements of this subsection.(2) Requirements.— The distribution of collective media rights revenue under paragraph (1) shall—(A) ensure that—(i) each member conference or member institution receives a minimum distribution of collective media rights revenue, the amount of which shall be established under a bylaw adopted in accordance with subsection (c)(2)(C); and(ii) each member institution receives more collective media rights revenue (excluding revenue from the College Football Playoff) during each academic year than the largest amount of collective media rights revenue (excluding revenue from the College Football Playoff) that the institution received in any single academic year during the period of academic year 2021–2022 through academic year 2024–2025;(B) distribute not less than 15 percent of the collective media rights revenue that remains after compliance with subparagraph (A) equally among all member institutions that received revenue from intercollegiate athletic competitions within intercollegiate football in the Football Bowl Subdivision during academic year 2024–2025; and(C) distribute the collective media rights revenue that remains after compliance with subparagraphs (A) and (B) to member institutions based on the performance of each institution during the academic year with respect to the institution’s contribution to the collective media rights revenue.(3) Transfer of revenue.— Before distributing collective media rights revenue under paragraph (1), the covered entity shall, in accordance with section 106, transfer an amount of collective media rights revenue to the fund or program established under that section to ensure that the program or fund is adequately funded.(e) Protection of women’s and Olympic sports.—(1) In general.— Any member institution that receives collective media rights revenue shall, consistent with applicable intercollegiate athletic association rules, offer and maintain at least as many grant-in-
The bill says: The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, as amended by section 201(b)(1) of this Act, is amended by inserting after section 4 (15 U.S.C. 1294) the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 1294)
15 U.S.C. 1293(2)changedby S. 4668 Sec. 206(a)
(2) in the case of an interscholastic football contest, such contest is between secondary schools, both of which are accredited or certified under the laws of the State or States in which they are situated and offer courses continuing through the twelfth grade of the standard school curriculum, or the equivalent, and
The bill says: in paragraph (2), by striking "and" at the end;
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 1293)
15 U.S.C. 1293(3)changedby S. 4668 Sec. 206(a)
(3) such intercollegiate or interscholastic football contest and such game site were announced through publication in a newspaper of general circulation prior to August 1 of such year as being regularly scheduled for such day and place., and
The bill says: in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end and inserting ", and"; and
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 1293)
15 U.S.C. 1293added (4)by S. 4668 Sec. 206(a)
(4) the season and any postseason, including championships, of such intercollegiate football contests conclude not later than January 8 of any year, to the extent practicable.
The bill says: by adding at the end the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 1293)
15 U.S.C. 1293changedby S. 4668 Sec. 206(b)
The bill says: by inserting "(a)" before "The first sentence"; and
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 1293)
15 U.S.C. 1293added (b)by S. 4668 Sec. 206(b)
(b)(1) Section 1(b) shall not apply to any joint agreement described in that section that permits any person to sponsor, telecast, or authorize the telecast of any postseason intercollegiate football contest involving an institution participating in the Football Bowl Subdivision during the protected Army-Navy Game broadcast window.(2) For purposes of this subsection, the term protected Army-Navy Game broadcast window means the period beginning 1 hour before scheduled kickoff and ending 30 minutes after the official conclusion of the telecast of the annual football game between the United States Military Academy and the United States Naval Academy occurring on the second Saturday in December in any year.
The bill says: by adding at the end the following:
Bill text · Current law (15 U.S.C. 1293)