Arbitrator uphelds College Sports Commission’s ruling in Nebraska NIL case

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A group of 18 Nebraska football players has seen their NIL arbitration case with the College Sports Clearinghouse denied, in a landmark challenge to the enforcement power. A neutral arbitrator has issued a final, binding decision affirming the College Sports Commission’s application of the rules in connection with third-party NIL agreements between Playfly and Nebraska athletes, according to a CSC press release on Monday night.

The CSC, the body tasked with enforcing revenue-sharing and NIL regulations, previously rejected over-the-cap deals submitted this offseason by 18 current Nebraska players.

The rejected Nebraska deals involve payments to the players via PlayFly Sports, which partnered with Nebraska in 2022 to pay the school more than $300 million for usage of its multimedia rights over 15 years. In December, PlayFly agreed to redirect $10.25 million — including approximately $8 million by June — to NIL payments.

The CSC classifies PlayFly and other multimedia rights holders such as Learfield as associated entities. An associated entity is defined as a third party affiliated with a university that exists primarily to promote that school’s sports or to create NIL opportunities.

“We are pleased with the arbitrator’s decision to affirm the CSC’s fact-based application of the rules,” said Bryan Seeley, CEO of the College Sports Commission. “This process shows the system is working as intended: a decision we made was challenged and a neutral arbitrator assessed the facts to inform a final decision. We hope and expect that the student-athletes will submit new deals that comply with the rules, so we can promptly review them.”