The NCAA’s Board of Governors has moved to support rule changes to allow student-athletes to get paid for their name, image, and likeness in a much-anticipated overhaul of the organization’s amateurism rules. Conditional third-party endorsements will now be allowed, as will outside compensation related to social media, other businesses, and personal appearances.

In essence, student-athletes will now be allowed to profit off of their name, image, and likeness as long as schools are not involved in payments and school or conference logos are not used, the board announced on April 29.

The NCAA’s release said the new rules will, however, allow student-athletes to reference their sport and school and will call on NCAA members to use school compliance officers to oversee the types of endorsement deals and value of individual contracts to ensure fair value for the services provided. While the recommendations outline the ways athletes can make money, they also leave room for discretion at the NCAA and school level. NCAA staff will also aid with oversight.

All deals will also be subjected to a set of “guardrails,” the group said, the specifics of which are still being worked out but are paramount to successful NIL implementation.

For more on the topic, tune in to today’s episode of Fundamentals at 12 p.m. ET when FOS reporter Emily Caron will chat with Pac-12 Conference Commissioner Larry Scott.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell voluntarily reduced his salary to zero last month. According to a memo obtained by ESPN, league executives and managers making more than $100,000 will take a pay cut from 5-15% starting in May. Salaries less than $100,000 won’t be affected, and no salary above $100,000 will dip below that amount as a result, according to the memo. The league also plans to furlough a limited portion of workers.

The NFL’s pay cut falls in line with what other major stick and ball leagues have done:

• The NBA reduced the salaries of top executives by 20%
• The NHL reduced the salaries of top executives by up to 25%
• MLS headquarters employees saw pay cuts up to 25%
• MLB cut the salaries of senior executives an average of 35%

In other NFL news, Amazon has renewed its streaming partnership with the league, signing a new three-year deal to keep airing Thursday night games on its digital platforms. As part of the deal, Amazon Prime Video and Twitch will stream the 11 Thursday Night Football games, which will also continue to be broadcast on Fox and Fox Deportes and simulcast on NFL Network.

In a new wrinkle to the deal, Amazon will also exclusively stream one regular-season game globally, which will be a to-be-determined game played on a Saturday in the second half of the 2020 NFL regular season. That game will also be televised in the participating team’s home markets on over-the-air television.

With no live action on the field, fans are seeking out anything reminiscent of sports or with a hint of competition.

From The Last Dance to the NFL Draft, traditional sports are getting their share of viewers, but so too are several esports. Both the professional Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and League of Legends leagues have had record-breaking numbers in recent weeks, according to The Verge.

Some notable CS:GO Season 11 numbers:

• 489,120 concurrent viewers across all platforms
• 113.2% increase in total viewers
• 215.5% increase in average minute audience

Meanwhile, League of Legends European Championship also broke its concurrent viewership record as 476,599 people watched a week-three matchup between the eventual finalists in the competition. In Champions Korea, the championship match for League of Legends drew a record-breaking 1,074,561 peak concurrent viewers.

The entertainment, sports and fashion giant Endeavor is seeking to raise $250 million by June to help soften the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, the New York Post reported. Endeavor was expecting a $150 million dividend payment from the Ultimate Fighting Championship – which it owns half of – only to have the UFC cancel its events and payout because of the outbreak. Endeavor’s operations also include entertainment agency WME, Professional Bull Riders, artist management agency The Wall Group, EuroLeague and IMG.

That $150 million was intended to help fund a stock buyback program by Endeavor after the company pulled its IPO in September. Instead of getting a rebuild off the ground, the Post said the coronavirus has brought “Endeavor’s business to a halt.” The firm’s leader, Ari Emanuel, has reportedly turned to private equity firm Silver Lake, which already owns 42% of Endeavor, to help source the $250 million.

Last week, Endeavor announced a furlough or pay cut to 2,500 employees, approximately a third of the company. Any money from those savings will go to basic functions as it struggles to keep the lights on.