The U.S. Department of Education says plans for colleges to pay athletes directly for their name, image and likeness deals would run afoul of Title IX.

The NIL era of college athletics is getting another big twist, this time courtesy of Title IX. The Department of Education determined in a memo that Title IX applies to name, image, and likeness (NIL) payments to college athletes.

U.S. Department of Education defines NIL as financial aid that must be proportional for male and female athletes

The direct payment plans that many major college athletic departments are making for athletes would violate Title IX law, according to a Department of Education memo.