WATCH LIVE: Senate expected to consider the Protect College Sports Act

The Senate is set to vote on a comprehensive bipartisan bill on Monday that aims to regulate college sports, addressing the chaos caused by soaring athlete payments and near-limitless transfers between institutions. This legislative effort seeks to bring order to an industry that has undergone significant upheaval following a 2025 court settlement, which enabled colleges to pay players for their name, image, and likeness.

The bill would grant the NCAA enhanced authority to oversee these rules while providing limited antitrust protections to enforce them. It also incorporates the terms of the 2025 settlement into law and establishes new constraints on the system to curb runaway expenses for colleges. Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Washington Senator Maria Cantwell worked together to negotiate the legislation, which now requires approval from the House of Representatives before it can become law.

The bill's proponents, supported by over 70 senators from both parties, argue that it aims to reduce constant litigation and uncertainty for athletes, schools, and fans, while also offering increased health and labor protections for hundreds of thousands of student athletes. However, critics contend that the bill does not sufficiently safeguard athletes or curb the substantial financial resources allocated to coaches, colleges, and conferences.

Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat who has collaborated with labor and civil rights groups to oppose the bill, contends that it essentially legitimizes a system of exploitation without resolving the larger issues at hand. Despite President Donald Trump's prior interest in the legislation and the White House's formal endorsement last month, the bill faces an uphill challenge in the House, where it has repeatedly failed to gain approval.

If the Senate passes the measure before the end of the year, it will need to restart the process in the next Congress, as the House is currently on recess until after the November elections. The legislation targets the excessive spending and unlimited transfers that have characterized college sports since the 2025 settlement, which allowed colleges to directly pay players for their name, image, and likeness.

The bill codifies the settlement, including a revenue cap that permits schools to distribute up to $21.5 million in revenue to their players, and potentially doubles that amount for certain institutions through a retention fund. It also offers schools and conferences the option to share their television media rights to generate additional revenue.

To address the instability caused by the transfer portal, the legislation limits player transfers to one "free" move within a five-year period, subject to certain exceptions, and caps total eligibility at five years. The proposed eligibility limit emerged in response to concerns over schools pushing boundaries, such as LSU's suspended plans to roster players who had participated in NFL training camps.