Neither Reasonable nor Necessary: “Amateurism” in Big-Time College Sports

Daniel, Rascher and Andrew, Schwarz (2000): Neither Reasonable nor Necessary: “Amateurism” in Big-Time College Sports. Published in: Antitrust (2000)

Abstract

The NCAA and its member schools are a joint venture that fixes the compensation of its most important workers, the athletes, at a level that is substantially below what would otherwise occur in a competitive market. Claims of amateurism and the need for competitive balance obscure the more than $3.5 billion dollars in revenue generated mostly on the backs of those athletes. From the point of view of rule of reason antitrust analysis, the NCAA’s justification for its concerted wage fixing has obvious weaknesses. Recent phenomenal growth in revenue has made the claims of the necessity and reasonableness of concerted action to restrain wages increasingly dubious.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: amateurism; monopoly; cartel; NCAA; college sports; competitive balance; collusion
• Subjects: L - Industrial Organization > L8 - Industry Studies: Services > L83 - Sports ; Gambling ; Restaurants ; Recreation ; Tourism; K - Law and Economics > K2 - Regulation and Business Law > K21 - Antitrust Law

References

Arthur A. Fleisher, Brian L. Goff, and Robert D. Tollison, The National Collegiate Athletic Association: A Study in Cartel Behavior, (1992).

Andrew S. Zimbalist, Unpaid Professionals: Commercialism and Conflict in Big-Time College Sports, (1999).

December 15, 1999 Associated Press article, Sampson: Players Deserve Something.

NCAA v. Board of Regents, and Law v. NCAA.

Michael A. Flynn & Richard J. Gilbert, The Analysis of Professional Sports Leagues as Joint Ventures, Economic Journal (forthcoming) for more on professional sports leagues as joint ventures.

http://www.sportsmapnews.com/060199.htm.

www.cpbl.com

www.aba2000.com.

Hennessey v. NCAA, 564 F.2d 1136, 1146 (5th Cir. 1977)

Justice v. NCAA, 577 F. Supp. 356, 382 (D. Ariz. 1983)

Gary Becker, College Athletes Should Get Paid What They Are Worth, Bus. Wk., Sept. 30, 1985, at 18.

Stephen Ross, Break up the Sports League Monopolies, in P. Staudohar & J. Mangan, eds. (1991), The Business of Professional Sports.