Yang advocates for athletes of revenue sports like football and basketball to be paidGETTY IMAGES
Andrew Yang, an entrepreneur seeking the Democratic Presidential nomination in '20, believes "so strongly that college athletes should get paid that he's made it a policy position" of his campaign, according to Nick Bromberg of YAHOO SPORTS. Yang's campaign website has a link to a page titled "NCAA should pay athletes," where he "lays out the idea that athletes who help generate revenue for their schools -- like football and men's basketball players -- should be given the opportunity to get some of the revenue their schools receive from sponsorships, television deals and conference payouts." Yang also "advocates for a 'performer athlete' class in college sports." Schools with "performer athletes -- the athletes who are revenue drivers for an athletic department -- 'would be required to start an affiliated taxable-for-profit entity through which both corporate sponsorships and performer athlete salaries would flow.'" Yang as the "underdog candidate" has generated a "passionate following on social media platforms." The fact that a potential Presidential debate participant has "simply staked out a policy position against the NCAA's current construct is another sign of the evolving attitudes towards paying college athletes" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 3/14).
