ATLANTA — The NCAA Board of Governors has taken the first step toward allowing athletes to cash in on their fame.

The board voted unanimously on Tuesday to clear the way for the amateur athletes to “benefit from the use of their name, image and likeness.”

The vote came during a meeting at Emory University in Atlanta.

In a news release, board chair Michael V. Drake said the board realized that it “must embrace change to provide the best possible experience for college athletes.”

According to an NCAA release there are a number of guidelines they need to follow: making the distinction between collegiate and professional sports clear, ensuring rules are transparent, focused, enforceable, and facilitating fair and balanced competition. 

The board of governors for the NCAA is asking each of its division to start creating new rules effective immediately and no later than January 2021.

The chairman of the NCAA board of governors says the association hopes to avoid a court battle against states that are attempting to pass laws aimed at dismantling the NCAA’s rules.

Ohio State President Michael Drake said the board hopes that “all who are interested in the future welfare of student-athletes would work with us to get to that point and using reasonable processes to get there.”

Last week, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gave the effort in Florida a political boost when he appeared with a bipartisan group of lawmakers and two former star football players from Florida State University.

"When I look for good policy ideas, California is usually not the first place I look. But I think California is on the right track," said DeSantis, a Republican.

"California did the first step. If Florida then follows suit — it's not as if Delaware is doing this — these are really big powerhouse states when it comes to college athletics," DeSantis said, "and I think that's going to require the NCAA to reevaluate."

NCAA rules have long barred players from hiring agents and the association has steadfastly refused to allow players to be paid by their schools, with some exceptions. A California law set to take effect in 2023 would prevent athletes from losing their scholarships or being kicked off their teams for signing endorsement deals. Other states could put laws in place as soon as next year.

The NCAA says it represents some 450,000 athletes nationwide.

Spectrum News Reporter Matt Fernandez contributed to this report.