When will the new revenue-sharing model come to effect? Landmark House vs NCAA settlement gets approved

On Friday, U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken formally approved the House v. NCAA settlement, paving the way for direct revenue-sharing between schools and athletes. The seismic change in college football will begin on July 1.

In order to keep up with the evolving nature of college sports, schools will now be allowed to pay athletes out of their revenue. Each school will be allowed to share up to $20.5 million. This amount is expected to increase yearly.

"Schools will be operating with roughly a $20.5 million rev-share salary cap in Year 1. For football, that's expected to be $13 to $16 million," On3's Pete Nakos wrote on X.

"Schools hope to circumvent that with NIL payments, which will have to be put through the NIL Go clearinghouse. Expect lawsuits."

“Despite some compromises, the settlement agreement nevertheless will result in extraordinary relief for members of the settlement classes,” Wilken wrote in her 76-page verdict.

“If approved, it would permit levels and types of student-athlete compensation that have never been permitted in the history of college sports, while also very generously compensating Division I student-athletes who suffered past harms.”

The settlement comes with some regulations to monitor the payments made to athletes. Consulting company Deloitte will run audits on NIL clearinghouse titled “NIL Go.” The approval of the clearing house will be required when the third-party NIL deals are worth $600 or more.

Aftermath of Judge Wilken's historic House vs NCAA settlement decision

Schools are acting fast on Judge Wilken's historic decision. They are reportedly sharing new revenue-sharing contracts with their athletes, and they are getting it signed by midnight.

As per On3, the breakdown of the revenue distribution is heavily tilted toward the most lucrative sports:

• Football: 75% of the total share ($13 to $16 million per school)
• Men’s Basketball: 15%
• Women’s Basketball: 5%
• All other sports combined: 5%

Meanwhile, on Friday night, NCAA president Charlie Baker made his stance clear on the settlement.

“Together, we can use this new beginning to launch college sports into the future,” Baker wrote. "In the weeks ahead, we will work to show Congress why the settlement is both a massive win for student-athletes and a road map to legislative reform.”

With this settlement, athletes are now entering a new era of structured compensation tied directly to the billions in revenue they help generate.