Electronic Arts (EA) Sports is still paying out college athletes from after a $60 million lawsuit was brought against them for violating the students’ rights by selling or misusing their names. 77 percent of that money will go to players, while the rest goes to the lawyers.
It only makes sense to pay the players — these college athletes don’t get paid for any playing time. They are their own franchise, and thus using their franchise without payment is legal. They are called collegiate athletes, and EA probably should have known that you can’t pull stuff like this.
NCAA rules prohibit college athletes from being paid for playing sports. However, the NCAA allows for player’s names and likeness to be used in video games made by EA Sports. EA Sports took advantage of this and has been using students’ names in video games from 2003 to 2014 without paying the athletes. By doing so, the NCAA and EA Sports have violated US Antitrust laws. Thousands of athletes have already filed a claim. Each athlete will receive a payout starting as low as $40.
