The ruling removes nationwide federal protection for a fifth year of college sports eligibility, while roughly 200 separate state cases involving up to 850 athletes remain unresolved.
The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals on 6 November 2026 reversed a lower-court ruling that had granted a fifth year of eligibility nationwide to college athletes who graduated high school in 2022.
The lower court issued its ruling in July 2026, but the appeals court put it on hold in August. Many athletes then joined rosters under favorable state-court rulings. The reversal does not overturn those separate orders, the Associated Press said.
The NCAA’s previous rules allowed athletes to compete for four seasons within five years. On 23 June 2026, the NCAA said its Division I Cabinet had unanimously approved an age-based model allowing up to five years of eligibility for athletes who enroll in college no later than the academic year after their 19th birthday. The NCAA said the changes would not be final until the Cabinet meeting concluded the following day.
Under the transition provisions, athletes who used their final season under the old rules during 2025–26 receive no additional eligibility. Those with eligibility remaining after that academic year and students first enrolling full time in college in fall 2026 can use the old rules or the new model, whichever is more favorable. Athletes initially enrolling full time in fall 2027 or later will use only the age-based model.
In Wisne v. NCAA, the three-judge panel rejected the plaintiffs' argument that all Division I athletes, regardless of sport, belonged to a single market. Defining that market was central to assessing the harm athletes said ineligibility caused them.
Judge Carolyn McHugh, who wrote the opinion, said an American football player seeking a Division I roster spot would not view the 101 schools without football programs as reasonably good substitutes.
The separate state cases remain unresolved. Court-dependent eligibility has affected players including Texas Tech quarterback Thomas Castellanos, who has moved on and off rosters as rulings changed.
NCAA chief legal officer Scott Bearby said changing eligibility rules retroactively can destabilize rosters and disrupt athletes' expectations about roster spots and playing time. Athletes covered by separate state orders can continue to rely on those rulings as their cases proceed.
France leads the north with 17 points after beating Fiji 54–17, while South Africa leads New Zealand on points difference in the south after beating Italy 66–7. England beat Australia 45–22 to move above Ireland into second on points difference. New Zealand beat Scotland 43–21, Wales beat Japan 28–21 and Ireland beat Argentina 42–12. England scored seven tries and a record 45 points against Australia on 8 November.
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Manchester United scored twice in stoppage time to draw 4–4 with Aston Villa. Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 3–1, leaving Palace bottom for the first time since December 2017. Arsenal beat Hull 1–0 and Nottingham Forest beat Manchester City 3–1; Bournemouth won 2–1 at Ipswich, Brighton beat Brentford 2–0, Sunderland beat Chelsea 1–0, Leeds beat Tottenham 1–0, Fulham drew 1–1 with Newcastle and Everton beat Coventry 3–1.
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Hoffenheim beat Schalke 2–1. Bayer Leverkusen won 2–1 at Cologne as Patrik Schick matched the club record of 8 league goals after 9 matchdays. Freiburg beat Union Berlin 2–0, Bayern won 2–1 at Mainz, Dortmund beat Elversberg 2–1, Leipzig beat Augsburg 5–2, Stuttgart beat Bremen 1–0, Frankfurt drew 2–2 at Paderborn and Hamburg beat Gladbach 3–1. Bayern and Dortmund finished on 21 points each, with Bayern ahead on goal difference, +20 to +9.
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