LSU gymnast and millionaire influencer Livvy Dunne testified against a landmark $2.8billion settlement of the lawsuit filed by college athletes against the NCAA and its largest conferences on Monday.
Several athletes have criticized the sprawling plan – which will allow schools to make NIL (name, image and likeness) payments directly to athletes – as confusing and one that undervalues them.
U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken has already granted preliminary approval of the settlement involving the NCAA and the nation’s five largest conferences (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC). The plan remains on track to take effect July 1 and clear the way for every school to share up to $20.5m each with its athletes annually.
Yet Dunne, whose estimated $10m net worth makes her the highest-paid female athlete in college sports today, is one of many who objects to the settlement.
The 22-year-old TikTok sensation does not support the formula used to set an athlete’s NIL value, arguing that hers was estimated too low.
In a passionate testimony over Zoom, she described herself as ‘a Division I athlete, a businesswoman, and I’ve been the highest-earning female athlete since the NIL rules changed.’
Livvy Dunne testified against a landmark $2.8billion NCAA settlement at a hearing on Monday
She said the settlement hardly acknowledges her true value and potential earning power; a plaintiffs’ attorney later said Dunne would be receiving an updated allocation.
‘This settlement uses old logic to calculate modern value,’ she said. ‘It takes a narrow snapshot of a still maturing market and freezes it, ignoring the trajectory we were on and the deals we lost and the future we could have had.’
Dunne was one of four athletes to testify against the settlement at a final hearing on Monday, and one of three who represent Olympic, non-revenue sports.
The fourth, Benjamin Burr-Kirven, was from a big-money sport as a former star linebacker at Washington.
Burr-Kirven, who went on to have a brief NFL career before a devastating leg injury, also questioned the errors in establishing an athletes’ NIL value.
‘It’s within the specific allocation that things get real squirrely,’ he said. ‘I was a fairly decorated football player and I’m getting paid the same as walk-ons I played with and then there are kids who I played with who were rotational players who are getting five times as much.’
Among concerns raised by objectors who testified at the hearing were the fairness of roster cuts and how they are accomplished, the process for how NIL valuations are established, and the management of athletes who will participate in the settlement in coming years.
The LSU gymnast and TikTok star argued the settlement doesn’t acknowledge her true value
Smaller schools say it will leave them behind deep-pocketed, donor-heavy programs, and the proposed guidelines are not expected to slow the massive spending now common across college athletics.
Wilken gave no indication Monday the complaints have changed her mind, though she acknowledged the concerns and asked attorneys for fresh feedback on several topics. The plan is expected to move forward with her final decision coming in a few weeks.
‘Basically I think it is a good settlement, don’t quote me, and I think it’s worth pursuing,’ the judge said. ‘I think some of these things could be fixed if people tried to fix them and that it would be worth their while to try to fix them.’
She asked both sides to come back in a week with how they might be able to address some of her concerns, saying, ‘Some of them are big-ticket items, some of them aren’t.’ Then, there would need to be some re-drafting done, she said.
