The NCAA Division I Membership Committee is currently discussing the possibility of creating a new autonomy subdivision, which would be the highest division in college sports and would comprise Power 4 schools.
The division would essentially be a separate tier of Division I schools that have more control to govern their own rules, particularly relating to athlete compensation and revenue sharing.
The biggest change in athletic competition would be in football, where the move would effectively split the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), separating the Power 4 teams from the other mid-major programs.
The creation of a new NCAA subdivision is being discussed.
The new subdivision would be the highest NCAA division and would include A4 teams.
Would split FBS. https://t.co/moYL8X10aC
— Mit Winter (@WinterSportsLaw) March 20, 2026
The D1 Membership Committee, led by Cornell Director of Athletics Nicki Moore, began looking into NCAA demographic and financial data during a February 23 video conference, with plans to continue reviewing what a new subdivision could look like in the months ahead.
“The committee reviewed subdivision-specific data ranging from enrollment size and sponsored sports to revenues and expenses,” the NCAA Division I Membership Committee said in its report.
“The committee also identified additional information to review at a future meeting, including an analysis of sponsored sports and areas of autonomy and related legislation. The committee also agreed to review financial, sport sponsorship, student-athlete experience and use of resources information, summarized by conference, at a future meeting.”
The discussions come as the NCAA enters its new revenue-sharing era. As schools become able to pay student-athletes directly, the wealth gap between the top Power 4 schools and the rest is widening. That’s particularly true in the SEC and Big Ten, which dominate the media rights landscape with deals of $1 billion per year plus apiece.
Additionally, with the NCAA having been embroiled in legal cases of late relating to athlete compensation, there is a sentiment that a more flexible subdivision could help bigger schools operate more easily—and with greater legal clarity—in a more modernized framework.
On the other side, creating the autonomous subdivision would essentially formalize a two-tier system in college athletics, widening the gap between the wealthy Power 4 schools and the rest.
This will be the ultimate undoing of Olympic sports.
Like division 1aa football I take it