How do college athletic departments make and spend money in 2027?
Published Jun 14, 2026 · Updated Jun 14, 2026
Direct Answer
A college athletic department is a roughly $300-400 million enterprise at the top schools where one product — football — funds nearly everything else, and where rising costs and new revenue-sharing obligations are squeezing even the giants. In fiscal 2025, Ohio State generated $336.1 million in operating revenue against $320.4 million in expenses for a $15.7 million surplus, while Texas spent a record $375.9 million (up $50 million) against $352.5 million in revenue — a $23 million planned deficit tied to its SEC move and the loss of the Longhorn Network, leaving $192.2 million in athletics debt.
The telling detail: at Texas, football was the only profitable program, earning roughly $107 million that subsidizes every other sport. Revenue flows from media rights, tickets, donations, and sponsorships; costs now include a new revenue-sharing line of about $21.3 million per school for 2026-27.
For operators, the athletic department is a vivid lesson in a loss-leader portfolio — one profitable product carrying many unprofitable ones — and in managing a P&L where costs rise faster than revenue.
1. One Product Funds the Portfolio
Football is the engine
At Texas, football earned about $107 million and was the only profitable program on campus. Every other sport runs at a loss, subsidized by football's surplus. The athletic department is a portfolio where one product generates nearly all the profit and funds the rest.
The loss-leader structure
This is a loss-leader model: football (and to a lesser extent men's basketball) is the profit center, while Olympic and non-revenue sports are cost centers kept for mission, compliance, and breadth. The whole enterprise depends on protecting the one profitable line.
2. The Revenue Streams
Where the money comes from
Top departments draw revenue from four main streams: media rights (the largest and most volatile), tickets, donations and fundraising (Texas surpassed $1 billion in fundraising), and sponsorships, plus NCAA and conference distributions. Ohio State's jump to $336.1 million shows how fast these can grow when media and conference money rise.
Media rights dominate and swing
Media rights are the biggest lever — and the riskiest. Texas reported about $21 million less in media revenue after losing the Longhorn Network in its SEC transition, a swing large enough to flip the department into deficit. When one stream this large moves, the whole P&L moves with it.
3. Rising Costs and the New Rev-Share Line
Costs climbing fast
Expenses are surging — Texas spent $375.9 million, a $50 million jump in one year. On top of facilities, salaries, and scholarships, departments now carry a new revenue-sharing obligation of about $21.3 million per school for 2026-27 (up to 22% of average power-conference revenue paid to athletes).
The cost base structurally expanded.
The non-profit paradox
Athletic departments tend to spend everything they earn — the "non-profit paradox" where rising revenue funds rising costs rather than surplus. Texas's debt of $192.2 million shows departments will even borrow to keep spending on facilities and rosters, betting future revenue covers it.
4. The RevOps and Finance Lessons
Protect the product that funds everything
The clearest lesson is that a loss-leader portfolio lives or dies by its one profitable product. RevOps and finance teams running a portfolio where one product, segment, or customer cohort generates most of the profit must protect that engine above all — its health determines whether the whole enterprise survives.
Concentration of profit is concentration of risk.
Watch the volatile dominant revenue line
Media rights dominate and swing the P&L — a single contract change flipped Texas into deficit. Operators with one outsized revenue stream should stress-test what happens when it moves, and avoid building a cost base that only works if the dominant line keeps rising. The Texas deficit was planned precisely because they modeled the media swing.
Discipline costs as revenue rises
The non-profit paradox — spending everything you earn — is a warning. Rising revenue invites rising costs and even debt, leaving no cushion when a revenue line wobbles. RevOps and finance should hold the line on cost discipline as revenue grows, banking surplus and limiting debt so a downturn does not become a crisis.
5. What to Watch
The expanded College Football Playoff TV contract is expected to raise revenues over the next several years, easing some pressure — but the new revenue-sharing cost and rising salaries push the other way. The questions for 2027 are how departments fund the $21.3 million rev-share line on top of climbing expenses, whether non-revenue sports survive the squeeze, and how much debt programs take on chasing competitiveness.
The durable lessons stand: protect the product that funds the portfolio, stress-test the volatile dominant revenue line, and hold cost discipline as revenue grows.
FAQ
How much revenue do top college athletic departments generate? The biggest run $300-376 million. Ohio State generated $336.1 million in fiscal 2025 (a $15.7 million surplus), while Texas generated $352.5 million but spent $375.9 million for a planned $23 million deficit.
How do athletic departments make money? Mainly from media rights (largest and most volatile), tickets, donations and fundraising, and sponsorships, plus NCAA and conference distributions. Texas has surpassed $1 billion in fundraising.
Why is football so important to the budget? Because it funds everything else. At Texas, football earned about $107 million and was the only profitable program — its surplus subsidizes the Olympic and non-revenue sports that run at a loss.
What is the new revenue-sharing cost? For 2026-27, schools can pay athletes up to about $21.3 million (roughly 22% of average power-conference revenue) — a new expense line on top of facilities, salaries, and scholarships.
What can RevOps learn from athletic department finances? Protect the one product that funds a loss-leader portfolio, stress-test the volatile dominant revenue line (media rights), and hold cost discipline as revenue rises to avoid the spend-everything paradox and excess debt.
Bottom Line
A top college athletic department is a $300-376 million enterprise where football funds nearly everything — at Texas, football's $107 million profit subsidizes a portfolio that otherwise loses money, even as the department ran a planned $23 million deficit on a media swing and carries $192.2 million in debt.
Ohio State's $15.7 million surplus shows the upside when media and conference money rise. For operators, the lessons are exact: protect the product that funds the portfolio, stress-test the volatile dominant revenue line, and hold cost discipline as revenue grows.
Sources
- AOL — Ohio State exceeds $300 million in athletics revenue for first time
- Sportico — Texas sets new college sports spending mark with $376M spree
- Yahoo Sports — Texas athletic department reports $23 million loss in 2025 from SEC move
- ESPN — College athletics revenues and expenses 2026
- Athletic Director U — Rethinking rising expenses and the non-profit paradox
- College Sports Commission — Revenue sharing
*College athletic department review — athletic department revenue reviews, rating, college sports finance review 2027, and a review of the football loss-leader model, media-rights volatility, and revenue sharing for operators.*