Cal Promises the Necessary Financial Support to Athletes Following House Settlement

In response to Friday’s approval of NCAA House settlement, Cal reported Saturday that it is committed to providing the funds necessary to compete in this new world of college sports.

The settlement allows colleges to pay its college athletes up to an estimated $20.5 million a year and that amount will increase annually.

Cal notes that the payments to athletes will be distributed primarily in the form NIL (name, image and likeness) agreements.

Here are the key excerpts from the Cal release.

Cal is committed to providing the resources necessary - with the significant support of Cal's donors and alumni - to recruit and support world-class student-athletes in this new environment. The campus is finalizing a distribution model that will be guided by the revenue currently produced by Cal's athletic programs - primarily football, men's basketball and women's basketball. UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons aims to further motivate and inspire the Cal family through a match of contributions of up to $6 million for football, up to $1.5 million for men's basketball, and up to $500,000 for women's basketball from campus resources.

""As an important driver of alumni and donor engagement, which is so important to advancing our mission, Athletics contributes greatly to the strength of our community," Lyons said. "I'm thrilled that we will be joining together to invest in our student-athletes so they can thrive and excel in this new era of intercollegiate athletics."

The statement hints at the breakdown of the amount of money Cal will distribute to each sport, but does not specify. Many colleges reportedly will pay 75% of their revenue-sharing pot to football players, 15% to men's basketball, 5% to women's basketball and 5% to all other sports.

The statement also noted that Cal “is also committed to increasing all revenue streams, in addition to philanthropic support.”

"Friday's ruling marks the beginning of a new chapter of intercollegiate athletics," Cal Director of Athletics Jim Knowlton said in the release. "With the support of our entire Cal family, we look forward to supporting our student-athletes and continuing to give them a world-class experience while competing at the highest level." 

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