The Alabama High School Athletic Association Central Board of Control has approved moving the start date for the “50 percent rule.”

The decision came at the associations spring meeting last week in Montgomery.

The rule refers to the number of students who play on a nonschool team together during the offseason. For instance, only 50 percent of the number of players required to play the game (three in basketball, six in soccer, etc.) may play on the same nonschool team and then the same high school team the following season in that sport.

The rule previously went into effect on the first day allowed for fall sports practice, which is usually around Aug. 1.

The Central Board voted to change the date to the first fall sports contest date allowed (excluding football’s zero week). For the 2017-18 school year, that date will be Thursday, Aug. 24.

“This change brings the 50 percent rule more in line with the AHSAA Outside Participation Rule,” said AHSAA Executive Director Steve Savarese. “It will provide the opportunity for student-athletes, especially in smaller towns, to participate in more recreation events during August.”

The rule was changed to allow for players on club soccer teams or AAU basketball teams to continue playing on those teams for three additional weeks during August. The 50 percent rule does not apply in the summer except for students attending individual camps. It also does not apply to players on middle school or junior high teams.

Savarese also announced the 2016 football playoffs took in more than $2 million for the second year in a row and for just the third time in AHSAA history.

“We also had great financial reports from the winter sports, and if we can have a strong finish with our spring championships, we hope we can reach our goal of distributing for the first time $2 million back to our member schools through revenue sharing this school year,” Savarese said. “Member schools have already received approximately $1.4 million in stipends from the football revenue for the 2016 season,” he said. The AHSAA has paid out approximately $10 million in revenue sharing to its member schools over the last seven years.