The University of Louisville is once again No. 1 in terms of profitability among the nation’s college basketball programs, according to the latest compilation, this one by CNNMoney.com.
And it’s not even close.
U of L took in $25.4 million in revenue, compared to $19.8 million for the University of North Carolina in second place, and almost $10 million more than Ohio State in third place. More importantly, Louisville had $16.8 in profit, compared to UNC’s $12.3 million and Ohio State’s $11.4 million.
Other regional schools like Indiana and Kentucky were ranked seventh and 14th, respectively, IU reporting $8.2 million in profit and UK announcing $6.1 million.
Missing from the top 20 this year was Duke, which after years of reporting profits in the $4 million to $5 million range, reported a loss of more than $2 million. The school said that was due to a shift in revenue to the non-sport specific classification.
| School | Revenue | Expenses | Profit |
| Louisville |
25,494,904 |
8,625,245 |
16,869,659 |
| North Carolina |
19,852,544 |
7,488,429 |
12,364,115 |
| Ohio State |
16,115,419 |
4,697,478 |
11,417,941 |
| Arizona |
17,524,360 |
6,132,352 |
11,392,008 |
| Illinois |
14,507,336 |
4,772,399 |
9,734,937 |
| Syracuse |
16,817,122 |
7,784,244 |
9,032,878 |
| Indiana |
15,173,264 |
6,946,942 |
8,226,322 |
| Minnesota |
12,956,390 |
5,113,345 |
7,843,045 |
| Kansas |
15,737,145 |
8,219,362 |
7,517,783 |
| North Carolina State |
10,914,295 |
3,747,426 |
7,166,869 |
| Tennessee |
12,576,715 |
5,464,911 |
7,111,804 |
| Texas |
14,770,278 |
7,891,661 |
6,878,617 |
| Michigan State |
15,592,500 |
9,031,373 |
6,561,127 |
| Kentucky |
14,773,034 |
8,615,726 |
6,157,308 |
| Maryland |
10,793,864 |
4,891,205 |
5,902,659 |
| Dayton |
9,091,521 |
3,401,333 |
5,690,188 |
| Northwestern |
9,328,062 |
3,720,715 |
5,607,347 |
| Xavier |
8,791,518 |
3,938,466 |
4,853,052 |
| UCLA |
11,775,932 |
6,996,960 |
4,778,972 |
| UNLV |
9,230,385 |
4,644,437 |
4,585,948 |
Source:Â CNNMoney
Does this suggest that maybe UL is taking advantage of us loyay fans and overcharging us for tickets and seat donations (at least compared to every other D1 school)?
I believe we are in line with other major programs and far as the cost of ticket prices, donations, etc. I think the difference is in the fan base loyalty and the administration (Jurich) doing a superlative job.
That credit should go to Kevin Miller who does a super job of managing U of L finances.
Jerry, glad you finally made a comment. 😉 I think we have to pay more if we want to remain a big boy. These profit numbers will look make Louisville look pretty good when and if a conference expansion stampede begins.
Thanks Charlie. The CPA in me came out and I could not resist the opportunity to talk money.
I agree that UL needs to remain attractive and competitive but here is my point….Syracuse averaged nearly 3000 more fans per game than UL and I assume their TV & tournament revenues are similar to UL’s since we are in the same conference, yet UL took in nearly $8.7 million more in revenues. What other possible explanation is there other than ticket prices and seat donations? Granted our non-revenue sports (funded by men’s basketball) in total are far superior to any other school in the Big East but every time I read these “most profitable” articles I can’t help but feel a little taken advantaged of.
Could be all those sponsored free T-shirts and balls, sponsored fan participation contests, sponsored scoreboard updates, sponsored boogie times, sponsored dental smiles, sponsored beautiful eyes, on and on and on. Maybe?
You are spot on. I have talked to fans from elsewhere and they are stunned by the cost of our annual “donations.”
And this is before the huge increases for seating in the new arena. And keep in mind UofL isn’t contributing to the costs of construction. These increases (mine was 50% which I refused to pay and went to lesser quality seats after 56 years). These increases aren’t because they are needed to fund the arena, they are because they can be!
Pitino palace… what ever your want to call it – the name the coach brings in the bucks. It seems this economic revelation is just one of the many things this Sicilian
Soul can generate with success — Wave the RED -Go Cards!
Just think what he could do if won a national championship here.
Sicilian Soul? Really?? Do I hear strains of the Godfather theme???
He has around 7 years to do so. He needs to get some mojo going on in the nationals – Do you think a gypsy woman could cast a spell on those red scarfs he wears and offer some magic to his players….. or maybe just for him.
Hey, good stuff! Keep bringing it!