Although the NCAA Division I men’s basketball championship for the 2018-19 season was $ 28 million – nearly twice the women’s budget – information from the NCAA on Friday also shows that the men’s tournament had total net income of $ 864.6 yielded. million that season. The women’s event lost $ 2.8 million – the biggest loss of any NCAA championship.
In light of the recent differences between the men’s and women’s tournaments made public this month, ESPN and The New York Times have requested NCAA tournament budgets for this season, but NCAA officials said the most recent and available data comes from the last fully completed series of championships, which is 2018-19 due to the pandemic. The budgets for 2020-2021 are expected to be similar to the data provided Friday.
The NCAA announced on Thursday that it has hired a law firm to conduct an independent gender equality assessment of its championships in all three divisions and across all sports. Kathleen McNeely, the NCAA’s chief financial officer, told ESPN on Friday that the external review will help determine if budgets are part of the issue, but there are reasons for the discrepancies.
“They have different budgets, but the difference in budgets is because of the scale of the two tournaments,” said McNeely, “… and the nuances in the delivery, which are usually committee decisions about how they’re going to do it. I’m not saying there may be no minor issues, but in my opinion there is a lot of parity between the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments as we look at it from an individual student-athlete experience, which tends to be our focus. “
According to the NCAA, championship budgets are set and approved every year. Current tournament budgets were set last June, but have changed completely due to the pandemic. The NCAA won’t know the full count until it’s over, as it will cost an estimated $ 14 million to create the “bubble” experience for men, including COVID-19 testing, and $ 16 million for the women’s bubble. McNeely said the NCAA is paying about the same amount, about $ 2 million each, just for testing at the tournament sites.
The NCAA board of directors has final approval of the championship budgets, which are recommended by the board’s finance and audit committee.
The men’s tournament budget for the 2018-19 season was $ 28 million, while it was $ 14.5 million for the ladies, but the NCAA points to “significant differences in tournament structures” that resulted in lower costs for the women’s championship. This year’s women’s tournament, which takes place in San Antonio, is unique in that the women’s first and second rounds are usually played on campus and hosted by the higher-ranked team. That format was agreed in 2014 to help grow fan interest and turnout. In the men’s tournament, all 32 matches in the first and second round are played in neutral locations, which leads to additional costs. The men’s tournament also has four more teams and an extra round (the first four).
The NCAA points to the savings made from the reduced spend on those games as the largest component that explains much of the discrepancy in the budgets, but in the information provided to ESPN, the organization specifically lists a difference of only $ 7.1 million to:
• $ 2.7 million in travel: Only seven men’s teams competed for competitions, while 16 women’s guest teams did not travel for the first and second rounds and another 16 rode.
• $ 1.7 million a day: The NCAA said the daily allowances, even in expensive cities, are the same for men and women. With 16 women’s teams hosting games in the first two rounds, the NCAA said it saved food and hotel expenses.
• $ 1.1 million for an extra round: The Men’s Tournament pays for the first four, which are not included in the Women’s Tournament.
• $ 1.6 million for facilities: The Men’s Final Four will include additional seating (and storage costs) to convert a football stadium into a basketball arena. The cost to build women’s basketball is generally less than $ 20,000.
“It is important to me that the fans understand that the policies around the men’s and women’s tournaments are the same,” said McNeely. “They have the same rules about how much the schools reimburse per day, they have the exact same travel policy … the purpose of all of this is that the experience for the student athlete is a great experience, it is a similar experience and we athletes the same opportunities regardless of the tournament they play in. “
The information provided by the NCAA also contrasts sharply with total revenues. The men generated $ 917.8 million, including media and ticket revenues, while the women made $ 15.1 million, including media and ticket revenues. The total attendance accounts for part of the inequality, as the men’s basketball tournament had 690,000 fans, while the women’s tournament had 275,000 fans.
The women’s tournament isn’t the only sport to lose money. The NCAA hosts 90 championships across its three divisions, and only five of them generate revenue. The money is simply being lost because the costs required to set up the championship outweigh the revenue generated, including TV money.
According to the NCAA, the men’s basketball tournament pays for nearly every other NCAA championship in all divisions except four: baseball, men’s ice hockey, men’s lacrosse, and men’s wrestling, all in Division I. These championships also generate more revenue than costs and help the other championships. Because the NCAA is a private organization, it is not subject to Title IX rules or Freedom of Information Act requests. NCAA President Mark Emmert was unavailable for comment on Friday, but is expected to address the media next week.