College Football Players Challenge NIL Restrictions in NCAA Deal

Two college football players sued the NCAA and four major athletic conferences in a proposed class action Tuesday, claiming rules restricting name, image, and likeness compensation violate federal antitrust and state laws.

The lawsuit centers around the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s landmark settlement in In re College Athlete NIL Litigation, also known as the “House settlement,” which included a cap on NIL payments, according to the complaint in the US District Court for the Northern District of California. The settlement imposed an annual $20.5 million cap on direct NIL payments to athletes and placed restrictions on compensation from boosters and school-affiliated collectives, according to the suit.

“The NCAA and the other defendants understood that state laws prohibit the implementation of NIL compensation restrictions set out in the” House settlement, the plaintiffs said in the suit.

The NCAA didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Talanoa Ili of the University of Southern California and Charlie Mirer of Stanford University allege the NCAA and conferences coordinated to suppress athlete NIL compensation despite knowing it violated state laws in California and 16 other states that protect college athletes’ rights to earn money from their name, image, and likeness.

The NCAA’s $2.8 billion deal allowed colleges to pay student-athletes directly for the first time and also was designed to quell future suits over name, image, and likeness.

The two players seek treble damages and injunctive relief to stop enforcement of the restrictions in states where they allegedly violate local laws. They’re seeking certification of four different classes representing time-bound revenue-generating college athletes attending schools constrained by federal NIL restrictions and similarly situated athletes in California, the complaint says.

Berger Montague PC represents the athletes.

The case is Talanoa v. NCAA, N.D. Cal., No. 3:26-cv-05562, complaint 6/9/26.