What the New NCAA Rules Could Mean For Youth Athletes

College athletics brings in millions of dollars of revenue for schools, coaches, and the NCAA. Yet, up until recently, the NCAA has prohibited college athletes from being paid. College athletes had previously been unable to make any money from sponsorships, endorsements, advertisements, social media, and other forms of monetizing their image. However, earlier this year, the NCAA changed its ruling. It now allows college athletes to profit from their likeness. 

This rule change certainly makes a world of difference for current college athletes, but what does it mean for youth athletes who dream of one day playing their sport in college? Here’s a look into how the new NCAA ruling could affect young players. 

Recruiting

The first way the rule change will impact prospective college athletes is through the recruiting process. Now that athletes can accept money, colleges will be rolling out new monetary incentives to entice athletes to choose their schools. Young athletes could receive gifts and money from schools that want them to play for them.

Since prospective students can now earn money, it’s giving them another reason to play college sports. For some students, scholarships are the only path to be able to go to college, so with the new NCAA rules, the ability for athletes to make their own money is a bonus.  

However, there are also consequences to this. The ability of colleges to give out incentives could widen the inequality gap. It could benefit already wealthy student-athletes and make it harder for less privileged athletes to see any of these benefits. 

Growing an Image

Another way young athletes will be impacted is the drive to cultivate their image early. Now that college athletes can profit from their image, they will need to bolster their image to profit off of. Young athletes can start using social media to establish themselves as influencers so that when it comes time for college, they have a solid online presence for brand deals and sponsorships. 

Young athletes will continue to strive to be the best of their sport and the best in business as they compete for brand deals. In addition, they’ll begin to find new ways to make money, even if it has nothing to do with their sport, so they can continue to rake in money throughout college. 

Overall, the NCAA rules will change what college athletics looks like. Being an athlete could become just as much about playing a game as branding your image.

Featured image via Unsplash

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