Trump: will issue order on college sports within a week
TL;DR
President Trump's executive order, signed in July 2025, aims to protect non-revenue and women's sports in colleges by requiring athletic departments to expand scholarships and roster opportunities. It also prohibits third-party pay-for-play arrangements to curb financial inequities, with enforcement mechanisms to align state laws and ensure compliance for the 2025-2026 season.
Trump: will issue order on college sports within a week
On March 6, 2026, the federal government continues to implement Executive Order 14025, signed by President Donald J. Trump on July 24, 2025, to address structural challenges in collegiate athletics. The order aims to preserve non-revenue and women's sports programs while curbing third-party pay-for-play arrangements that threaten financial equity across collegiate sports according to the White House. Key provisions require athletic departments with over $125 million in annual revenue to expand scholarship and roster opportunities for non-revenue sports, while those with $50 million or less must avoid disproportionately reducing support for such programs as detailed in the presidential action.
The order prohibits universities from facilitating third-party payments to athletes for recruitment or roster retention, except for legitimate endorsements reflecting fair market value according to the White House. This directive seeks to counter escalating spending in revenue-generating sports like football, where some programs reportedly allocated $35–40 million in 2025 for player compensation according to Crowell & Moring. Federal agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission and the National Labor Relations Board, are tasked with clarifying student-athlete status and shielding college sports from antitrust litigation as outlined in the presidential action.
The Department of Education, in collaboration with the Attorney General, has developed enforcement mechanisms to align state NIL laws with federal priorities, addressing a patchwork of regulations that contributed to competitive imbalances according to the White House. Institutions are urged to adjust scholarship allocations and roster limits to prioritize non-revenue sports, with compliance expected for the 2025–2026 athletic season. The policy underscores the administration's view that college sports, as a distinct institution from professional leagues, require safeguards to maintain educational and developmental benefits for student-athletes as stated in the fact sheet.
