On June 30th, 2021, just seven hours and forty minutes before the July 1st deadline, the NCAA announced its “Interim Policy” on NIL.

The Interim Policy directed schools in states with a NIL law or executive order to comply with those laws/orders. In states with no state law or executive order, the Interim Policy would govern.

The Policy prohibits (1) compensation for athletic participation or achievement, (2) compensation as a recruiting inducement, (3) compensation directly from schools, and (4) compensation where no bona fide NIL-related service is provided by an athlete.

Importantly, the Policy is “interim” until one of two things occurs. One, the NCAA changes its NIL rules contained in Bylaw 12.5, or two, the NCAA obtains protective federal legislation from Congress.

In reality, the Interim Policy was a temporary white flag of surrender on the NCAA’s claims of voluntary rulemaking on NIL.

The NCAA appears to have hastily put together the Interim Policy with the belief that a congressional bailout would be forthcoming.

The Interim Policy is not a rules change. 

While many view the Interim Policy as an NCAA-inspired “victory” for athletes, it exists despite the NCAA, not because of it.

The NCAA fought up until the very last hours of June 30th, 2021, to prevent the NIL era and the current NIL market from coming into existence.

Since July 2021, the NCAA and Power 5 have done everything possible to regain iron-fisted control over the NIL market through protective federal legislation.