CHICAGO ― Major colleges run their football teams just like those in the NFL, relying on players to generate millions of dollars in revenue, an economist testified Wednesday before a federal agency that will decide whether Northwestern football players may form the first union for college athletes in U.S. history.
“The difference would be … the NFL pays their players,” Southern Utah University sports economist David Berri told the National Labor Relations Board, on the second day of a hearing in Chicago that could stretch into Friday. That colleges don’t pay their football players, he said, likely boosts their programs’ profitability further.
The NLRB is considering whether Wildcats’ football players can be categorized under U.S. law as employees, which would give them rights to unionize. The university, the Big Ten Conference and NCAA have all maintained college players are student-athletes, not employees.
Attorneys for Northwestern began presenting their case opposing unionization, endeavoring to show that the newly formed College Athletes Players Association would provide little tangible benefit to the Northwestern players.
Asked whether one of CAPA’s stated goals — to improve football-player graduation rates — made any sense for Northwestern, the university’s associate athletic director, Brian Baptiste, noted the school’s rate was already No. 1 in the nation — at 97 percent.
“I guess you can increase 97 percent,” he said wryly.
Union supporters say they would be able to force schools to better protect football players from head injuries. Baptiste suggested that only the NCAA, with oversight power across the country, was in position to address that.
