U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee Endorses Cantwell’s Bipartisan Protect College Sports Act

U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee Endorses Cantwell's Bipartisan Protect College Sports Act

"We … encourage the Committee to advance the Protect College Sports Act without delay," write USOPC CEO, Nat'l Governing Bodies Council Chair, & Team USA Athletes Commission Chair

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, received a joint endorsement letter for the Protect College Sports Act of 2026 from the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC), the National Governing Body Council (NGBC), and the Team USA Athletes' Commission (AC).

"We write today in strong support of the Protect College Sports Act of 2026 and its provisions that preserve opportunities for collegiate Olympic and Paralympic sports," wrote Sarah Hirshland, Chief Executive Officer, USOPC, Brendan Quirk, Chair, NGBC, and Joel Rosinbum, Chair, Team USA AC. "We look forward to Thursday's markup and encourage the Committee to advance the Protect College Sports Act without delay."

"The revised version of the Protect College Sports Act ensures that higher-resourced NCAA Division I athletic departments - those with annual revenues exceeding $80 million - will maintain at least the same number of roster spots and scholarship opportunities for women's and men's Olympic sports as in the 2024-2025 academic year. We welcome that the agreement provides reasonable flexibility, including transitional protections for mid-sized institutions, while preserving overall participation opportunities," they added.

Sen. Cantwell is leading the effort to reform college sports and ensure tomorrow's athletes have the same opportunities as today's competitors. The Protect College Sports Act of 2026 creates new rules and new tools to stabilize college sports, including codifying athletes' rights and protections in law, supporting women's and Olympic sports, and amending the Sports Broadcasting Act (SBA) to expand revenue for all schools. She co-introduced the bill with Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-TX), along with U.S. Senators Eric Schmitt (R-MO) and Chris Coons (D-DE).

Earlier this month, at a landmark hearing on the bill, the Commerce Committee heard powerful testimony on the worsening crisis facing college athletics, including the future of women's and Olympic sports, athletes' rights, and the financial sustainability of the entire collegiate sports system.

In March, Sen. Cantwell released a bipartisan discussion draft of the College Sports Competitive Act with Sen. Schmitt that would amend the SBA to allow colleges to pool their media rights in negotiations.

In December of last year, she introduced the Helping Undergraduate Students Thrive with Long-Term Earnings (HUSTLE Act) with U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) so that college athletes earning NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) money can protect more of it for their post-playing lives. In October, Sen. Cantwell joined former college and professional athletes and U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) in warning that the SCORE Act would roll-back hard fought NIL rights and health protections, leave athletes vulnerable to unscrupulous agents, short-change women's and Olympic sports, and shut the door on collective bargaining rights.

Last September, Sen. Cantwell, joined by co-sponsors Sens. Booker and Blumenthal, introduced the Student Athlete Fairness and Enforcement (SAFE) Act to codify athletes' rights and protections in law, expand revenue for all schools, support women's and Olympic sports, and bring much-needed stability to the college sports system. Sen. Cantwell also released a report showing how skyrocketing media rights payments have exacerbated a massive financial gap between traditional power conferences, especially the new Power 2-the SEC and Big Ten-and everyone else.