In this week’s “Make Me Smart” newsletter, we dive into the latest on athletes who are suing to recoup money off their college careers. Plus, we delve into the economics of being single and the numbers on how much consumers are spending on subscriptions.

The News Fix

Colleges are still making money off their glory days, so why can’t players? When the NCAA lifted bans on college athletes earning money from their fame in 2021, many athletes, including some who played decades ago, stepped up to collect. Reggie Bush, the former University of Southern California running back and 2005 Heisman Trophy winner, is the latest to seek back pay. He filed a lawsuit this week against his alma mater, the Pac-12 Conference and the NCAA for “profiting from uncompensated use” of his name, image and likeness.” Bush wants a share of the profits that he claims the three organizations reaped off his fame and public personality, including money made from lucrative licensing deals, sponsorships and TV contracts after he left the school. “While Bush received the accolades, Defendants NCAA, USC, and the Pac-12 Conference received all the money,” the lawsuit read. Former University of Michigan football players filed a similar lawsuit this month.

College athletes who were previously denied name, image and likeness (NIL) deals want what’s “owed” to them. Facing several antitrust class-action lawsuits, the NCAA and the five biggest conferences proposed in May a nearly $2.8 billion payout for thousands of athletes who missed out on NIL earnings between 2016 and 2021. The settlement also lays out a framework for schools to directly share up to $22 million in revenue with athletes going forward.

In exchange for revenue sharing, the NCAA wants more control over what counts as an NIL deal. This month, a judge questioned whether the NCAA was unfairly capping athletes’ earning potential by proposing to ban NIL payouts from “booster collectives” — groups of wealthy donors who help schools recruit top players by signing them to NIL deals. About 81% of the $1.17 billion spent on college athlete NIL deals last year came from these groups. The NCAA sees these cash payments as “pay to play” agreements, not “real” NIL deals for which athletes are paid to promote a brand or product. (While top athletes make millions through these boosters, many others lose big when collectives promise huge sums that disappear after athletes commit to their schools.)

Get ready to pay more for college sports. Revenue sharing with athletes is supposed to start next fall, and one university plans to make fans foot part of the bill. The University of Tennessee added a 10% “talent fee” to the cost of 2025 season tickets to help compensate players.

Smart in a shot

In 1950, the number of married American adults was nearly double those who were unmarried. By 2023, a nearly equal number of adults were single. Half of them aren’t actively looking for romantic connections — they’re happy on their own.   

Despite this, singles pay for not partnering up. “We live in a world built for two,” said Peter McGraw, a behavioral economist and author of “Solo: Building a Remarkable Life of Your Own.” Onstage with our own Kimberly Adams this week, he said the U.S. has over 1,000 laws that provide benefits to married people that singles can’t access. Then there’s the cost of living; the average single person pays $7,110 more for housing annually than couples living together.

But marriage comes with risks too, McGraw said, like the tendency of married people to overly depend on a partner for social connection or the financial consequences of divorce. Of the many social and economic benefits of staying solo, he noted singles tend to have broader and deeper friendships and they’ve got total control over their finances.

We hope that “Make Me Smart” fans in Denver were able to attend Kimberly’s event on the economics of being single. If you missed it, you can watch the whole thing on YouTube.

The Numbers

Remember when you signed up for that free trial and then forgot to cancel? Last month the Joe Biden administration announced a crackdown on what it called unfair practices in the subscription economy, which is now worth hundreds of billions of dollars globally. Let’s do the numbers.

1973

The Federal Trade Commission implemented the Negative Option Rule in 1973, regulating how companies can continue to charge recurring payments if customers don’t cancel. The FTC now wants to strengthen those rules to make canceling a subscription as easy as signing up for one.

$273 

According to consulting firm West Monroe, Americans spent an average of $273 a month on subscriptions in 2021, up 15% from 2018.

$133 

Respondents to a survey by C + R Research underestimated their monthly subscription costs by $133, spending more than double what they estimated on average.

3.4 times 

Subscription businesses grew 3.4 times faster than other companies in the S&P 500 over the last 12 years, according to subscription economy company Zuora.

$1.5 trillion     

The global subscription economy is expected to grow to $1.5 trillion in 2025, up from $650 billion in 2020.

None of us is as smart as the rest of us

Tell us what’s making you smarter at smarter@marketplace.org. We’d love to include your recommendation in a future newsletter.

Bailing on Oakland

Once considered the “pro sports capital of America,” Oakland, California, has lost the Warriors, the Raiders and the A’s over the past five years. Marketplace reporter Henry Epp is reading a Wall Street Journal story (gift link) on why many teams gave up on the city and how entrepreneurs are trying to fill the void.

Neurodivergent-friendly travel

With just a little basic knowledge and simple accommodations, hotels, restaurants and attractions are becoming friendlier spaces for visitors with autism. Host Kimberly Adams is reading a BBC article about how tourism boards and the hospitality industry are accommodating neurodivergent travelers’ needs and sensitivities.

Chasing clicks via texts

It’s not just marketers who want to send you text messages. Marketplace producer Ariana Rosas is reading a New York Times article about news outlets using the messaging platform WhatsApp to send readers links to breaking news. Would you sign up for text messages from Marketplace? (That’s not a rhetorical question. We’re really asking! Let us know by responding to this email.)