President Trump issues new executive order for college sports. What it means
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No other American president since 1961 has issued more executive orders than Donald Trump. And now he’s issued another one, this time to regulate college sports, even though he doesn’t have the legal authority to do that.
The latest was issued April 3 and is called “Urgent National Action to Save College Sports.” It aims to limit athletes’ participation in college sports to five years with some exceptions and calls on the NCAA to establish transfer rules that allow a player to transfer once in five years without penalty, plus an additional time if the athlete graduates. It also aims to protect funding for women’s sports and calls for a crackdown on booster collectives that are used to pay players.
It’s his second executive order about college sports since July 2025, when he issued one called “Saving College Sports.” That one had little if any apparent effect. The newest one might not either, simply because it’s an executive order without the backing of a law passed by Congress.
Meanwhile, legislation to regulate college sports has stalled in Congress amid partisan disagreements.
“An executive order’s authority must derive from an already existing statute or a constitutionally enumerated presidential power,” the American Constitution Society states on its website.
If not, it’s generally not enforceable. Trump previously said he expected lawsuits to be filed against it trying to stop it. But this executive order could have an impact in other ways, such as pressuring Congress to act on legislation. The Trump Administration also previously has used the threat of federal funding cuts to try to get universities to do what he wants.
What does Trump college sports executive order seek to do?
From the White House fact sheet:
- “The Order directs Federal agencies to bolster the effectiveness of key college-sports rules on transferring, eligibility, and pay-for-play by evaluating whether violations of such rules render a university unfit for Federal grants and contracts.”
- “Simultaneously, the Order calls on the appropriate governing body to update these rules to restore financial stability and protect the future of all college sports, including women’s and Olympic sports by:
- establishing clear, consistent, and fair eligibility limits, including a five-year participation window;
- setting structured transfer rules for academic and athletic continuity;
- ensuring medical care for student-athletes;
- implementing revenue-sharing in a manner that protects and expands opportunities in women’s and Olympic sports;
- banning improper financial arrangements including pay-for-play agreements facilitated by collectives and similar entities; and
- establishing protections against unscrupulous agent conduct.”
- “The Order also calls on Congress to quickly pass legislation to address these critical issues.”
The executive order will be effective Aug. 1 and will not affect the upcoming basketball transfer period, which opens the day after the national championship game.
What NCAA said about President Trump‘s executive order on college sports
NCAA president Charlie Baker released the following statement Friday afternoon in response to President Trump’s executive order:
“This action is a significant step forward, and we appreciate the Administration’s interest and attention to these issues. Stabilizing college athletics for student-athletes still requires a permanent, bipartisan federal legislative solution, so we look forward to continuing to work alongside the Administration and Congress to enact targeted legislation with the support of student-athlete leaders from all three divisions.”
Why did President Trump issue this order on college sports?
The newest order comes after Trump held a big meeting about college sports March 6, during which he made a string of false statements and misplaced the blame for the industry’s problems. Those problems and challenges include budget shortfalls that stem from the House vs. NCAA legal settlement, along with unlimited annual player transfers and a bevy of lawsuits that have tried to override the NCAA’s eligibility rules.
Some college leaders have grown exasperated amid an overall sense that NCAA rules aren’t being enforced anymore as players transfer every year in search of more money from their names, images and likenesses (NIL). Starting last July, the same college leaders suddenly had to find up to $20.5 million annually to pay players according to the terms of the House settlement – a huge new expense that’s led to big budget deficits.
What will happen next after Trump’s order?
Trump anticipated this executive order would be challenged by lawsuits that would deem it enforceable. Sports attorney Darren Heitner on Friday said he would seek “emergency relief” for any athletes who were restricted from transferring because of the executive order. He called it an “illegal restraint.”
Heiter also noted March 10 that the NCAA is a private organization and that executive order only direct federal agencies, not private groups.
“No statute gives the President power to rewrite them or deprive athletes of their rights,” Heitner wrote on social media March 10. “An EO would be aspirational only and a waste of time.”
What is Trump’s goal with this executive order?
Trump generally wants college sports to go back to how it was before, when players were not allowed to be paid for their NIL and also weren’t allowed to transfer to another school without having to sit out a year first.
“I’d like to just go exactly back to what we had and ram it through a court if we have to,” Trump said March 6.
Going back to how it was is practically impossible, however. State laws permit players to earn money for their NIL. The House settlement is binding in federal court and stems from an antitrust lawsuit against the NCAA. Likewise, unlimited annual player transfers stem from a binding settlement in federal court that resolved a separate antitrust lawsuit against the NCAA.
“The biggest challenges to modern college sports all come from private litigation, usually through the Sherman Antitrust Act,” said Sam Ehrlich, an assistant professor at Boise State who tracks college sports litigation. “The executive branch has zero power to change how judges interpret the statutes at issue. There would indeed have to be an act of Congress.”
How many executive orders has Trump issued?
Trump has issued 474, including 220 from his first term, according to The American Presidency Project. By comparison, President Barack Obama issued 276 during his two terms. President George W. Bush issued 291.
Trump has issued the most of any president since Dwight Eisenhower, who issued 484 before he left office in 1961.
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What does President Trump’s new college sports executive order do?
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