$18,900,000,000.
That’s how much NCAA schools made last year, but the players didn’t touch a penny.
The Numbers Behind Paying College Athletes
NCAA schools earn ~ $18.9 billion in revenue/yr.
58% percent of that comes from: — men’s football — men’s basketball
And the leading organization (NCAA) does $1B in revenue a year.
From 2008 to 2018, the combined revenue of Power 5 conferences grew by 260%.
But what’s interesting?
Over the same stretch, revenues for the NFL and NBA increased by approximately 90 and 110%.
Ticket revenues for NCAA FB & MBB exceeded pro: – baseball – football – hockey
Salaries Across Sports
College coach salaries are rising as revenues increase.
Average football salaries: NFL coach: $5.5m NFL player: $2.5m P5 college coach: $2m P5 player: $0
Average basketball salaries: NBA coach: $4m NBA player: $7.4m P5 college coach: $2m P5 player: $0
Revenue Sharing in College Sports
The NBA and NFL do a 50-50 revenue share split between players and owners.
The average salaries reflect that:
Average D1 football player: — $360,000 / per year
Average D1 MBB player: — $500,000
Starting P5 MBB player: — $800k-$1.2 million
Starting P5 QB: — $2 million
Athletic Scholarships vs. Paying Athletes
But athletes get scholarships!
Yes, however…
Less than 7% of the total NCAA revenue goes to athletes in the form of: • athletic scholarships • stipends for living expenses • academic bonuses
College sports are often described as being played by amateurs. But… The economic reality is that it’s a business model that looks far more like a professional sports organization.
