The NCAA and the Power Five conferences have officially approved a settlement that will set up a model for colleges to begin paying athletes directly for the first time.
The NCAA’s Board of Governors and each of the five Division I conferences with decision-making autonomy – the Big Ten, SEC, ACC, Big 12 and Pac-12 (whose current members voted with the league even though 10 of them are joining new conferences in July) – all voted this week to approve a settlement that will pay $2.77 billion to former college athletes to resolve a trio of antitrust lawsuits against the NCAA.