A small Texas university has gone to court to object to the $2.77 billion settlement proposal that would erase a set of antitrust claims against the NCAA and the nation's largest conferences and clear the way for schools to begin steering millions of dollars directly to athletes as soon as fall 2025.
Houston Christian filed its motion in federal court in California, arguing the settlement would divert funds from academics and marginalized and underserved populations as well as putting big-money college sports the over the needs of non-athlete students. The school contends its interests were not represented during settlement talks despite being an NCAA member.
Officials at smaller schools across the NCAA noted they were not consulted or informed about settlement details before they were announced last month and have said the financial impacts for them could be dire. The court filing by Houston Christian is first known official objection to the proposal, which will need approval from U.S. District Court Judge Claudia Wilken to take effect.
Tyler Boyd, Houston Christian’s general counsel, said there could be more objections on the way.
“I think for other people that look into this case, it’s going to raise an issue of fiduciary responsibility,” Boyd said this week. “And whenever there’s a fiduciary responsibility issue raised, that goes to the core mission of the university, and are we living out the core mission of the university.”
The plan is intended to settle a host of federal antitrust claims and also clears the way for schools to share revenue with athletes, a dramatic step that all but ends the NCAA's longstanding amateurism model.
The defendants in the case included the Atlantic Coast, Big Ten, Bit 12, Pac-12 and Southeastern conferences but also the NCAA, whose vast membership includes 1,100 schools that have athletic departments of varying sizes and budgets to match.
The NCAA will cover 41% of the $2.77 billion total — largely by lowering its annual payments to its member schools over 10 years — while the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC will cover 24%. The next five largest college football conferences (American Athletic, Mid-American, Conference USA, Mountain West ands Sun Belt) will cover 10%.
The remaining quarter of the total will be covered by non-football conferences in Division I and by conferences that compete in the second tier of D-I football, the Championship Subdivision. Houston Christian is a member of the latter group, competing in the Southland Conference that has 10 schools and some 4,200 athletes.
“Even now, without the proposed settlement, NCAA member institutions annually lose untold millions of dollars by participating in Division I sports. Only a select few ever generate enough revenue from athletics to cover their expenses,” the school said in its motion to intervene — formally take part — in the case. “The proposed settlement institutionalizes the diversion of money that would otherwise inure to the member institutions for the core mission of education and research, by requiring them to pay damages for athletes’ name, image, and likeness and establishing a continuing formula for doing so on a go-forward basis.”
HCU said 95% of its approximately 2,500 students receive financial aid. Boyd said Houston Christian believes someone has to look out for smaller schools with limited resources.
“I think it’s certainly unprecedented, and this is uncharted territory,” he said. “And the reason for the intervention is really just to have our voice be heard during these unprecedented times.”
Boyd said he wouldn’t be surprised to see other challenges from smaller schools or others looking to join Houston Christian's fight. He said the case is not anti-athlete, but rather is in favor of supporting regular students.
“Those institutions are going to have to look at this case," he said. “And it’s certainly up to them if they would want to get involved with our intervention.”
AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports
FILE - In this April 25, 2018, file photo, the NCAA headquarters is shown in Indianapolis. Houston Christian University's U.S. district court case might be just the beginning of the challenges the NCAA and the major conferences will face as they sort out how their schools will be able to potentially pay athletes. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Portugal plays Slovenia on Monday in the round of 16 at the European Championship. The game kicks off at 9 p.m. local time (1900 GMT) at the Waldstadion in Frankfurt. The winner will advance to face Belgium or France in the quarterfinals on Friday. Here's what to know about the match:
— Portugal starts the group stage with wins over the Czech Republic and Turkey, then rests some starters in the third game and loses 2-0. Sound familiar? Portugal started Euro 2008 just as it has 16 years later. Then, Portugal did not get momentum back and was eliminated in the first knockout round — to a Germany team heading to the final. Slovenia is a different kind of test.
— Slovenia will play its first knockout game at a major tournament in 32 years as an independent soccer nation. Slovenia went home after the group stage at Euro 2000, and the World Cups of 2002 and 2010, though only the top two advanced at those tournaments.
— Slovenia started Euro 2024 the same way eventual champion Portugal did in 2016: three straight draws, no wins in the group to advance among the best third-place teams.
— Portugal already has more wins in 90 minutes at this tournament (2) than in its 2016 title-winning campaign (1).
— Frankfurt hosts its fifth and final game and is not a city where favorites thrive. So far here, Belgium lost to Slovakia, England played poorly in a draw against Denmark, and Germany needed a stoppage-time equalizer against Switzerland.
— At the 2022 World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo was dropped to the bench for the round of 16 game that Portugal won 6-1 against Switzerland. His replacement Gonçalo Ramos scored a hat trick. That was by then-coach Fernando Santos. Ronaldo is in better standing with current coach Roberto Martinez and Ramos got just 24 game minutes off the bench so far.
— Josip Iličić has not started a game for Slovenia but the 36-year-old’s return to the national team has been a positive story. The former Atalanta player’s career was derailed by depression he suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Iličić came on as a substitute in the 0-0 draw with England on Tuesday.
— This is the second most lopsided mismatch by FIFA world rankings of the round of 16. There are 51 ranking places between No. 6 Portugal and No. 57 Slovenia but 66 between No. 8 Spain and No. 74 Georgia.
— 2-0. The score Slovenia beat Portugal by in March when they played a friendly in Ljubljana.
— Slovenia lost just once in 15 games over the past year, a 2-1 defeat in Denmark last November in their qualifying group.
— Only Germany had more attempts on goal than Portugal's 54 in the group stage. Only Scotland had fewer than Slovenia's 25. Slovenia star forward Benjamin Šeško had five of those attempts without scoring yet.
— Portugal defender Pepe continues to extend his tournament record as the oldest-ever player. He will be aged 41 years and 126 days on Monday.
— Cristiano Ronaldo, who turned 39 in February, will set the record as the oldest ever scorer if and when he gets his first goal at Euro 2024. The record is held by Luka Modric, scoring against Italy on Monday at age 38 years and 289 days.
— "He’s going to be very good for this knockout phase of the tournament, and I hope — or I’m sure —that he’ll give us a lot of joy.” — Pepe praises Ronaldo
— “Two years ago, we played against Serbia and we lost 4-1 in Belgrade. This was a turning point and since then we’ve only grown as a team.” — Slovenia midfielder Adam Gnezda Čerin
AP Euro 2024: https://apnews.com/hub/euro-2024
Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban talks with UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin prior to the start of a Group A match between Germany and Hungary at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Stuttgart, Germany, Wednesday, June 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
Slovenia's players celebrate after a Group C match against England at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Cologne, Germany, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
England's Marc Guehi, left, and Slovenia's Benjamin Sesko fight for the ball during a Group C match at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Cologne, Germany, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
England's Marc Guehi, front, and Slovenia's Josip Ilicic fight for the ball during a Group C match between England and Slovenia at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Cologne, Germany, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo gestures after Georgia's Georges Mikautadze scored his side's second goal during a Group F match between Georgia and Portugal at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Wednesday, June 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
Slovenia's players celebrate at the end of a Group C match between the England and Slovenia at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Cologne, Germany, Tuesday, June 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, left, and Portugal's Pepe warm up prior of a Group F match between Turkey and Portugal at the Euro 2024 soccer tournament in Dortmund, Germany, Saturday, June 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
