An arbitrator ruled in favor of the College Sports Commission on Monday in a case brought on behalf of Nebraska football players that is viewed as a key test for the new entity in charge of approving third-party name-image-likeness deals in college sports.
The CSC in a statement said the arbitrator affirmed the commission's decision to reject third-party NIL agreements between Nebraska's multimedia rights (MMR) partner, Playfly, and the players.
At issue was whether Nebraska's MMR partner would be considered an “associated entity" — deals from which are subject to CSC scrutiny.
With that decided, the CSC said the arbitrator rejected the deals because:
— They lacked what the CSC calls a “valid business purpose” because they did not include goods or services offered to the general public for profit.
— Playfly violated a rule against “warehousing” NIL rights — i.e., paying for the rights to use for some purpose later instead of employing them right away.
Speaking to media at the Atlantic Coast Conference meetings in Florida, the CSC's CEO, Bryan Seeley, said he didn't consider the deal to be a precedent.
“Even if it’s not precedential, the fact is it’s influential, and it’s influential in people’s minds about how they think about enforcement,” he said. "So, for me, it was a good day.”
The CSC said it would release the arbitrator's full decision later.
Some observers are curious to see whether the university or the state will sue over the decision, something the CSC was hoping to avoid when it sent out a “participation agreement” for schools to sign that forbid them from suing the commission.
Many schools have been reluctant to sign the agreement, arguing they’re not allowed under their state laws to sign away their ability to take legal action.
“It’s whether their state attorney general challenges it in court and what the outcome of that is, I think that is the true test of whether this (CSC) is a legitimate governing body,” sports attorney Paia LaPalombara told The Associated Press in an interview last week in discussing the Nebraska case.
In acknowledging the decision, Nebraska AD Troy Dannen said the school would continue to operate under the CSC process “while monitoring changes in the collegiate landscape.”
“We fully support all our student-athletes maximizing the value of their Name, Image and Likeness during their time at the University of Nebraska,” he said.
Officials from the Nebraska attorney general's office did not immediately respond to emails from the AP.
Seeley still thinks there are ways for the Nebraska players to get paid within the rules.
“I don’t believe litigation is necessary for these student-athletes to get money for their NIL,” he said. "I cannot control what happens, though, outside of what we do.”
In a separate case pending in the federal court that approved NIL payments via the House settlement, attorneys are arguing that MMR partners should not be considered “associated entities.” A hearing in that case is scheduled for May 27.
AP Sports Writer Mark Long in Amelia Island, Florida, contributed to this report.
FILE - Fans fill Memorial Stadium in Lincoln Neb., on Saturday, Sept. 17, 2016. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik File, File)
NAIROI, Kenya (AP) — France is pitching what it says is a new model of partnership with African countries at a summit that begins Monday in Kenya as it completes a military withdrawal from West African countries that has been widely seen as marking declining influence on the continent.
But Paris is expected to use the two-day Africa Forward Summit, which it is co-hosting, to push a new Africa policy that focuses more on English-speaking countries and offers what it calls a “partnership of equals." Its new defense agreement with Kenya marks the direction it hopes to go.
France has long maintained a policy of economic, political and military sway over its former colonies dubbed Françafrique, which included keeping thousands of troops in the region. But after years of criticism from leaders and opposition parties in those countries over what they described as a demeaning and heavy-handed approach, France has been forced to withdraw most of those troops.
The summit — France's first in an English-speaking African country — will be attended by more than 30 heads of state and government, including from Francophone countries. On his arrival Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron said France may disagree with West African governments but “never disagrees with the people.”
Kenya’s newly ratified defense agreement with France has been criticized by civil society groups for granting too much immunity from local law to French troops, a sensitive issue in a country where a similar agreement with the United Kingdom has left a trail of hard-to-prosecute crimes against locals.
At a time when many African nations, particularly in the Sahel region, are reducing or expelling foreign military presences in what they say is a quest to reclaim their sovereignty, Kenya is hosting a growing international military presence.
The Kenya-France Defense Cooperation Agreement was signed on Oct. 29, 2025, by Kenya’s Defense Minister Soipan Tuya and French Ambassador to Kenya Arnaud Suquet and ratified by parliament on April 8. The same month, it also ratified defense agreements with countries including the Czech Republic, China and Italy.
While defending the defense agreements, parliament defense committee chair Nelson Koech said Kenya's treaties with advanced militaries provide training and intelligence-sharing opportunities that will make its defense stronger.
Koech said the agreements were not a “surrender of sovereignty,” adding that newer agreements guarantee that foreign troops will be tried in Kenya in the event of serious crimes such as murder.
A month ahead of the summit, a contingent of around 800 French troops arrived in Kenya aboard a navy ship.
The agreement grants visiting French forces primary jurisdiction over their personnel for on-duty offenses, echoing broad legal protections in past UK pacts that shielded British soldiers from Kenyan courts amid scandals like the 2012 murder of a young woman named Agnes Wanjiru and the deadly 2021 Lolldaiga ranch fire.
A British soldier is due to be extradited after Kenyan courts found him answerable for the 2012 death of Wanjiru, who was last seen alive in his company near the British troops’ training grounds in Nanyuki, central Kenya.
France's President Emmanuel Macron participates in the youth session "Africa Forward, Creation in Motion" during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
France's President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenya's President William Ruto, right, participate in the youth session "Africa Forward, Creation in Motion" during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
France's President Emmanuel Macron participates in the youth session "Africa Forward, Creation in Motion" during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
France's President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenya's President William Ruto, right, participate in the youth session "Africa Forward, Creation in Motion" during the Africa Forward Summit at the University of Nairobi, Kenya, Monday, May 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
French President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenyan President William Ruto stand during the national anthems at State House in Nairobi, Kenya, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
French President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Kenyan President William Ruto shake hands at State House in Nairobi, Kenya, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
