President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday that will reportedly prohibit third-party pay-for-play payments in college athletics, according to an announcement from the White House via Pete Nakos of On3.
As part of the executive order, the president also directed the Secretary of Labor and the National Labor Relations Board to ensure that athletes are to be classified as amateurs and not employees.
While third-party pay-for-play payments are prohibited under the executive order, the order does "not apply to legitimate fair-market value compensation that a third party provides for an athlete, such as for a brand endorsement."
Shortly after news of the executive order broke, NCAA president Charlie Baker released a statement on the matter.
Statement from NCAA president Charlie Baker: pic.twitter.com/5IL6pGFu8g
— Pat Forde (@ByPatForde) July 24, 2025
It remains to be seen if and how this executive order will be enforced, but the promulgation from the president comes shortly after House lawyers and Power Five conference commissioners settled a dispute with the College Sports Commission that would relax guidelines around the validity of third-market deals from NIL collectives.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as President Trump Signs Executive Order Prohibiting Third-Party Pay-for-Play Payments.
