A June settlement in the House v. NCAA antitrust case will, for the first time, let American universities pay their athletes directly, with football programs allowed to share up to $20.5 million a year with players beginning in the 2025-26 academic year. A separate analysis cited by Forbes estimates that college football athletes will earn about $1.9 billion this season from a combination of school revenue sharing and existing name-image-likeness (NIL) deals. The new obligations are already squeezing athletic department budgets. Virginia Tech’s athletic director projects the school’s overall sports budget will need to jump to $200 million from $144 million to stay competitive, while Kentucky expects a combined operating loss of nearly $31 million over the next two fiscal years. Eight Big Ten programs each carry more than $160 million in debt, according to the Athletic. To offset the cost of paying players, universities are accelerating construction of high-priced seating and hospitality areas aimed at wealthy fans and donors. Auburn University spent $1.6 million converting part of 86-year-old Jordan-Hare Stadium into the 350-capacity Locker Room Club, selling season-long memberships for $1,575 and field-level suites for up to $65,000 a game. Arizona State has introduced $20,000 loge boxes, and upcoming projects include new premium sections at Ohio State in 2026, a $700 million Beaver Stadium overhaul at Penn State, and $5 million ‘Founders Suites’ at Ole Miss. Sports consultancy Elevate has launched a $500 million fund to finance similar upgrades, underscoring how schools are turning to premium amenities to underwrite the sport’s imminent shift to professional-style payrolls.