Conference TV deal money vs bowl game money

[Statalyzer]

Why is one of them a potential trigger for lawsuits but not the other? Losing teams from a conference could result in re-negotiated TV deals, but it could also result in re-negotiated bowl tie-ins (fewer of them and/or less lucrative ones), so what is the difference that makes bowl tie-in changes not a lawsuit hot-button?

 

[Longhorny630]

Because schools don't make that much money from bowls, even the good ones. The bowl presidents make money from bowl games, and they don't want lawsuits being associated with them in any way shape or form.

 

[Santafe]

Here are the conference earnings for TV contracts (Note: Big 12 is currently 4th in average annual per member):

BIG TEN
10 years, $1 billion, ABC/ESPN (through 2016)
25 years, +$2.8 billion, Big Ten Network (through 2032)
6 years, $145 million, Fox (B1G championship game through 2016)
Annual: $236 million
Average Annual per School: $19.7 million

PAC-12
12 years, $2.7 billion, Fox/ABC/ESPN (through 2024)
Annual: $225 million (* $505 million potential)
Average Annual per School: $18.8 million from Fox/ABC/ESPN (* $30 million projected with Pac-12 Network)
* Pac-12 Network: the network will launch in 2012 with a primary network and 6 regional networks. Revenue projections combined are expected to be in the same range if not more than the Big Ten Network, which produces $280 million per year at $11 million per school.
Notes: New members receive 50% share in 2012, 75% share in 2012, 100% share in 2014

SEC
15 years, $2.25 billion, ESPN (through 2024)
15 years, $825 million, CBS (through 2024)
Annual: $205 million
Average Annual per School: $17.1 million
Notes: contract is expected to be renegotiated with the addition of Texas A&M, maintaining the current per-school payout. The SEC may be on it’s way to starting it’s own network that depending on future additions, could gain the conference and additional $10-$20 million per school per year).

BIG-12
13 years, $1.17 billion, Fox (through 2025)
8 years, $480 million, ABC/ESPN (through 2016)
Annual: $150 million
Average Annual per School: $15 million
Notes: The Big 12 contract is expected to remain as it is if a 10th school is added to replace Texas A&M. If the conference opts to expand to 12, the per-school payouts would likely remain the same with the total overall annual increasing. Expansion to 12 would also add a championship game expected to fetch a payout of $10-$18 million per year.

ACC
12 years, $1.86 billion, ESPN (through 2024)
Annual: $155 million
Average Annual per School: $13 million
Notes: figures expected to improve with the additions of Syracuse & Pittsburgh.

BIG EAST
6 years, $200 million, ABC/ESPN [CBS contributes $9 million of total] (through 2013)
Annual: $40 million
Average Annual per School: $3.18 million for football schools, $1.56 million for non-football schools.
Notes: contract is expected to change with the losses of Syracuse and Pittsburgh but will still grow due to the valuation of available conference television contracts (Big East is next conference up for renewal).

OTHERS:

CUSA
5 years, $35 million, CBS College Sports (through 2016)
5 years, $35 million, Fox (through 2016)
Annual: $14 million
Average Annual per School: $5.83 million

MOUNTAIN WEST
10 years, $120 million, CBS College Sports (through 2016)
Annual: $12 million
Average Annual per School: $1.33 million
Notes: losses and additions now have the MWC at 10 members with Hawaii as a football only member, will lower per school payout.

 

[misirlou]

Wait. CUSA makes more per member than the Big East? Wow!

 

[HornSwoggler]

Hadn't thought about it until I read Santafe's comment about B12 going back to 12 teams and a CCG. Looking at the schools that might be available for an expansion to 12 teams, only BYU, ND or maybe Boise St would seem to offer much enticement for a TV network to increase its contract enough to offset having to divvy up the conference by to 12 teams instead of 10. So far BYU has not worked out and Boise St is considering an offer to join the Big East in their attempt to remain a viable BCS conference. Who knows what ND is doing but they seem a much better fit for B1G and could be the savior for the Big East. After these three, not much to pick from that are upgrades to the conference unless the B12 can entice an ACC school and I don't see that happening.

 

[Statalyzer]

Ah, I think I had forgotten how little teams that go to bowls actually make from the bowls. Don't to the schools that don't go to the bowls sometimes actually make more money because they get free shared revenue without all the expenses?

 

[Santafe]

Here is what the bowl payout was for the 2006 season:

2006 SEASON BOWL PAYOUT

Bowl Per Team Payout

Poinsettia $750,000
Pioneer PureVision Las Vegas $950,000
R+L Carriers New Orleans $325,000
Papajohns.com $300,000
New Mexico $750,000
Bell Helicopter Armed Forces $600,000
Sheraton Hawaii $398,000
Motor City $750,000
Emerald $850,000
PetroSun Independence $1.1 million
Texas $500,000 for Big East, $750,000 for Big 12
Pacific Life Holiday $2.2 million
Gaylord Hotels Music City $1.6 million
Brut Sun $1.9 million
AutoZone Liberty $1.5 million
Insight $1.2 million
Champs Sports $2.25 million
Meineke Car Care $750,000
Alamo $2.2 million
Chick-fil-A $3.25 million for ACC, $2.4 million for SEC
MPC Computers $250,000
Outback $3 million
AT&T Cotton $3 million
Toyota Gator $2.25 million
Capital One $4.25 million
Rose $17 million **
Tostitos Fiesta $17 million ***
FedEx Orange $17 million
Allstate Sugar $17 million *,**
International $750,000
GMAC $750,000
Tostitos BCS Championship $17 million

*Notre Dame will receive $4.5 million per BCS rule; **Second teams from conferences receive $4.5 million per BCS rule; ***Boise State estimates it will receive around $3.5 million after sharing with five non-guaranteed conferences. (Figures could vary pending ticket sales.)

Sources: Conferences, bowls, teams, wire reports.

Determining a game's per-team payout is way too complicated, because the NCAA has changed the rules on bowl payouts. (What you see usually isn't what a school receives.) Changes in Bowl Championship Series revenue distribution and the elimination by the NCAA in the last three years of a minimum payout have helped make it possible for teams playing in the same game to receive different amounts.

In 2006, champions from the six major conferences generated $17 million apiece for their conferences in BCS games. But there are extremes within the BCS, for example, two BCS participants, Boise State and Notre Dame, received vastly different amounts: $9 million by Boise State for five other I-A leagues to share and $4.5 million for independent Notre Dame to keep.

Meanwhile, the Texas Bowl paid Kansas State $750,000, while Kansas State’s opponent, Rutgers, was paid $500,000. In the past, bowls had to guarantee at least $750,000. Now they negotiate with conferences. So, listing bowl payouts is deceiving, because what you get from each bowl is almost irrelevant.

Many conferences split revenue equally. For example, Duke (winless in 2006) received the same cut from the Atlantic Coast Conference as Wake Forest (who played in the FedEx Orange Bowl). However, the exposure and merchandise sales and other revenue streams tied to a BCS game are significant.

•In 2006, the Big Ten shared $34.4 million and---after all expenses were subtracted---each of the eleven schools received about $2 million. It cost the conference about $11 million for the seven Big Ten teams to travel to their bowl destinations.

•Other conferences, including the Atlantic Coast, PAC-10 and Western Athletic, also divided money evenly after expenses. The PAC-10 provides teams a set expense budget plus actual charter costs. It depends on the bowl. For example, in 2006, the conference paid $300,000 for Arizona State to help cover expenses to the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl, calling that game a “special case”.

•The Big East pays schools that make a bowl game on a tiered basis, with a BCS game worth $2.4 million, the second bowl $1.6 million, the third $1.3 million and the fourth and fifth $1.1 million. The Big Ten adds all of the conference bowl money and distributes it fairly. (The Big Ten wants to make sure schools can cover their expenses.)

•In 2006, at least two bowls--- the Chick-fil-A and Texas---paid different amounts to conferences based on the place of those teams in the standings.

What many people don’t realize is many universities lose money playing college football. An NCAA report released for the fiscal year 2008-09 reported 14 athletic departments of the 120 schools in college football’s bowl subdivision had an operating profit. (And that number was down from the 25 schools reporting losses for the 2006-07 and 2007-08 football seasons.)

Well, don’t most universities make money playing in bowl games? Yes, but that depends on the university, the competition, and the particular bowl game. Take the 2009 season, for example. Of the 34 bowls played, at least 13 schools spent more to play in the game than their conferences received in compensation. According to figures from public universities where open-records laws apply, those losses totaled more than $3.8 million.

Here are some of the universities reporting revenue losses for bowl games in 2009:

Rutgers (Petersburg Bowl): $740,000
South Florida (International Bowl): $428,000
Connecticut (PapaJohns Bowl: $430,000
Fresno State (New Mexico Bowl): $390,000
Missouri (Texas Bowl): $467,000
Middle Tennessee State (New Orleans Bowl): $50,000
Ohio University (Little Caesars Pizza Bowl): $66,314.

 

[Santafe]

Here are the bowl payouts for last season:

2010-2011 College Football Bowl Payouts

Tostitos BCS National Championship Game (ESPN)
Glendale, AZ
Pay Out (per team): $17,000,000

Vizio Rose Bowl (ABC)
Pasadena, CA
Pay Out (per team): $17,000,000

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (ESPN)
Glendale, AZ
Pay Out (per team): $17,000,000

Discover Orange Bowl (ESPN)
Miami, FL
Pay Out (per team): $17,000,000

Allstate Sugar Bowl (ESPN)
New Orleans, LA
Pay Out (per team): $17,000,000

Capital One Bowl (ESPN)
Orlando, FL
Pay Out (per team): $4,250,000

AT&t Cotton Bowl (FOX)
Arlington, TX
Pay Out (per team): $3,575,000

Insight Bowl (ESPN)
Tempe, AZ
Pay Out (per team): $3,325,000

Outback Bowl (ABC)
Tampa, FL
Pay Out (per team): $3,100,000

Chick-fil-A Bowl (ESPN)
Atlanta, GA
Pay Out: $3,250,000 ACC; $2,400,000 SEC

Progressive Gator Bowl (ESPN)
Jacksonville, FL
Pay Out (per team): $2,750,000

Valero Alamo Bowl (ESPN)
San Antonio, TX
Pay Out (per team): $2,225,000

Bridgepoint Holiday Bowl (ESPN)
San Diego, CA
Pay Out (per team): $2,200,000

Champs Sports Bowl (ESPN)
Orlando, FL
Pay Out (per team): $2,130,000

New ERA Pinstripe Bowl (ESPN)
Bronx, NY
Pay Out (per team): $2,000,000

Hyundi Sun Bowl (CBS)
El Paso, TX
Pay Out (per team): $1,900,000

Auto Zone Liberty Bowl (ESPN)
Memphis, TN
Pay Out (per team): $1,700,000

Franklin American Music City Bowl (ESPN)
Nashville, TN
Pay Out (per team): $1,600,000

Ticket City Bowl (ESPN)
Dallas, TX
Pay Out (per team): $1,200,000

Advocare Independence Bowl (ESPN)
Shreveport, LA
Pay Out (per team): $1,100,000

Meineke Car Care Bowl (ESPN)
Charlotte, NC
Pay Out (per team): $1,000,000

Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl (ESPN)
St. Petersburg, FL
Pay Out (per team): $1,000,000

MAACO Las Vegas Bowl (ESPN)
Las Vegas, NV
Pay Out (per team): $1,000,000

Northrop Grumman Military Bowl (ESPN)
Washington, DC
Pay Out (per team): $1,000,000

Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl (ESPN)
San Francisco, CA
Pay Out (per team): $750,000-$825,000

BBVA Compass Bowl (ESPN)
Birmingham, AL
Pay Out: $900,000 SEC; $600,000 Big East

New Mexico Bowl (ESPN)
Albuquerque, NM
Pay Out (per team): $750,000

uDrove Humanitarian Bowl (ESPN)
Boise, ID
Pay Out (per team): $750,000

San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl (ESPN)
San Diego, CA
Pay Out (per team): $750,000

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl (ESPN)
Honolulu, HI
Pay Out (per team): $750,000

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl (ESPN)
Detroit, MI
Pay Out (per team): $750,000

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl (ESPN)
Dallas, TX
Pay Out (per team): $750,000

GoDaddy.com Bowl (ESPN)
Mobile, AL
Pay Out (per team): $750,000

Texas Bowl (ESPN)
Houston, TX
Pay Out (per team): $612,500

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (ESPN)
New Orleans, LA
Pay Out (per team): $325,000