NCAA President Baker Wants Standard NIL Contracts, With No Earnings Cap

DALLAS – NCAA President Charlie Baker just finished his first month on the job, during which he emphasized that his biggest priority is getting new name, image, and likeness regulations passed.

Baker clarified his exact wish list for the future of NIL to reporters at the women’s Final Four National Championship on Sunday: transparency for deal value and uniformity of contracts — but no ceiling on how much athletes can make.

Baker wants a “uniform standard contract” for other transactions like mortgages. But he clearly did not want uniform earnings — he is vehemently against a market cap on NIL earnings. “I never said that,” he told reporters, referring to the idea of a market cap. “Never.” 

What he does want, concerning earnings, is a database where NIL transactions are disclosed so that families and athletes can understand how much money they can expect to make. 

“Families and athletes ought to know what the market actually is,” he said. “Right now, they have no idea.”

Baker emphasized a couple of regulations that some state laws require: a certification process for agents and financial literacy programs. But the NCAA could pass stricter requirements for what schools must offer and what qualifies agents to work in the NIL space. 

It’s unclear when or how the NCAA will get these requests solidified. Antitrust law makes it difficult for the governing body to legally pass its rules. And while Baker has already spent time lobbying in Washington, there’s still been little to no movement in Congress beyond a NIL hearing on Wednesday. 

Though Baker wasn’t in attendance at the hearing, he did say he believed it went well.