Trump Promises Aid for Preservation of Women's Athletics and Smaller College Sports at Risk of Elimination
On July 24, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Saving College Sports.” The order aims to address the challenges and inequality in college sports, particularly focusing on the protection and expansion of opportunities for women’s and Olympic sports, as well as non-revenue sports.
The order seeks to preserve athletic scholarships and collegiate competition opportunities for female athletes and those in Olympic sports, ensuring these programs are prioritized alongside revenue-generating sports. It prohibits certain third-party pay-for-play payments while allowing fair-market-value compensation like brand endorsements. Additionally, it mandates that any revenue-sharing with athletes be implemented in ways that safeguard women’s and non-revenue sports programs from being disadvantaged.
In the current era of college sports, women's sports and Olympic sports have been taking a huge hit. Trump expressed concern about the situation, stating that women's sports are being left behind and vowed to help come up with a solution for the decline. The order also directs several federal agencies, including the Department of Labor, National Labor Relations Board, Attorney General, and Federal Trade Commission, to clarify the employment status of student-athletes and protect the long-term stability of college sports against legal challenges that might threaten non-revenue and women's sports.
Financial factors have been leading schools to make tough decisions about certain sports that do not generate money for universities. The executive order also addresses the ongoing conversation around college sports, particularly the difficulties faced by participants due to Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) and the transfer portal. Trump stated that players are being traded around like playing cards, referring to the transfer portal, and expressed concern about the large amounts of money passing hands in college sports without transparency.
Furthermore, the order mandates consultation with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committees to uphold the role of college athletics in developing world-class athletes. The Department of State will also promote internationally that sex-based classifications govern women’s sports eligibility, including pushing for changes at the International Olympic Committee level.
On the gender equality front, related actions under the broader Trump administration enforce Title IX compliance to protect female-only athletic opportunities and facilities, prevent male athletes from competing in women’s sports, and threaten federal funding loss for non-compliant institutions.
In conclusion, the executive order primarily addresses college sports challenges by reinforcing protections and fairness for women’s and Olympic sports, preserving scholarship and competition opportunities, restricting pay practices that could favor male-dominated revenue sports, and upholding Title IX gender equality protections both domestically and internationally.
- The executive order signed by President Donald Trump, titled "Saving College Sports," targets the health-and-wellness aspect of college sports by focusing on the protection and expansion of opportunities for women’s health and Olympic sports.
- In the realm of education-and-self-development, the order directs several federal agencies to clarify the employment status of student-athletes, with an aim to safeguard the long-term stability of college sports against legal challenges.
- The order also delves into politics, aiming to rectify the challenges and inequality in college sports, particularly focusing on the protection and expansion of opportunities for women’s and Olympic sports.
- On the international stage, the Department of State will use general-news platforms to promote the sex-based classifications governing women’s sports eligibility, including pushing for changes at the International Olympic Committee level.
