maybe to some of you a silly question

[downtown85]

Why does football rule the roost in conference re-alignment when NCAA basketball ad spend is greater than NCAA football ad spend?

Outlined in the following link (page 9) of the presentation:

http://frankthetank.wordpress.com/2012/02/27/sports-data-from-nielsen-tv-viewership-for-college-conferences-and-pro-sports-social-media-buzz/

I would think that basketball would have more of a say and more revenue share. 

[Silkk the Shaka]

I'm guessing since about 1/3 of the teams play D1 football vs. D1 basketball the football $ is concentrated in fewer hands. And the $ flows almost directly to football teams due to the BCS, whereas in the case of the NCAA tournament a lot of that revenue gets spread out to operate every other sport under the NCAA umbrella.

[downtown85]

For those of you who don't bother to go to the link.  College basketball overall ad spend was 50% more that of College football.  College Basketball was slightly more than $1.2 billion whereas College football was around $800 million.  I think the answer might lie in the fact that the lions share of the revenue in College Basketball is generated post season.

[sailwi]

Very good article in the NYT's this morning on this subject.  I believe their conclusion that the regular season is somewhat irrelevant for the casual fan has a lot of merit.  I know we all care but we are not casual fans.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/13/sports/ncaabasketball/march-madness-makes-basketballs-regular-season-seem-irrelevant.html?ref=sports

[Benny B]

And the first horse is out of the gate...

BBall outspends simply based on quantity. Football drives the bus because of demand for the product, not advertising; i.e. a football game is more likely than a BBall game to cause a person to demand a specific cable network on their basic package.  Or at least that's the model that all of the BTN followers have their sights on.

Unfortunately, the cable/satellite business model that the BTN relies upon is in danger of becoming obsolete now that content producers are gaining avenues to deliver their product directly to the customer (Internet) without the middleman (cable/sat provider).

I know a certain DirecTV employee who will be all over me on this, but I point to the fact that Dish Network just gained FCC approval to changeover one of their sats to broadband.  Maybe it's to enhance their service, maybe it's a hedge against obsolescence. Who knows?

[brewcity77]

Okay...I think there's one very important factor being ignored here. Let's do a little math.

There are 120 Division 1 football teams that let's say play an average of 13 games in a season. Because you need 2 participants in each game, the number of games is 60 x 13 = 780 games.

There are 345 Division 1 basketball teams that let's say play an average of 32 games in a season. Because you need 2 participants in each game, the number of games is about 172 x 32 = 5,504 games.

Now we come to advertising revenue per game. For football, $800M / 780 = $1.03M spent per game in advertising dollars for college football games.

For basketball, $1.2B / 5,504 = $218K spent per game in advertising dollars for college basketball games.

I hope that explains why college football is such a big draw. Because the average college football game brings in about FIVE TIMES the revenue of the average college basketball game.

[downtown85]

Okay...I think there's one very important factor being ignored here. Let's do a little math.

There are 120 Division 1 football teams that let's say play an average of 13 games in a season. Because you need 2 participants in each game, the number of games is 60 x 13 = 780 games.

There are 345 Division 1 basketball teams that let's say play an average of 32 games in a season. Because you need 2 participants in each game, the number of games is about 172 x 32 = 5,504 games.

Now we come to advertising revenue per game. For football, $800M / 780 = $1.03M spent per game in advertising dollars for college football games.

For basketball, $1.2B / 5,504 = $218K spent per game in advertising dollars for college basketball games.

I hope that explains why college football is such a big draw. Because the average college football game brings in about FIVE TIMES the revenue of the average college basketball game.

Thanks. Good analysis! however basketball teams play roughly 3 times as many games through the course of a season.  so a bowl bound football team draws roughly the same ad revenue through the season as a perennial NCAA tourney Bound bball team. My point is that a top 25 basketball team generates roughly a similar amount through the course of a season as a top football team yet somehow doesn't get the mula for some reason.

[martyconlonontherun]

Thanks. Good analysis! however basketball teams play roughly 3 times as many games through the course of a season.  so a bowl bound football team draws roughly the same ad revenue through the season as a perennial NCAA tourney Bound bball team. My point is that a top 25 basketball team generates roughly a similar amount through the course of a season as a top football team yet somehow doesn't get the mula for some reason.

I would think it gets to the point where ESPN/networks ask if the content is worth the squeeze. Everyone watches a college football game nationally. I wouldn't say the same thing about college basketball. People watch it because they are bored and turned on ESPN. If bball content becomes too expensive, I could see them switching to other programming options to fill the night slots. In short, I just don't see bball being a nightly draw.

[downtown85]

I would think it gets to the point where ESPN/networks ask if the content is worth the squeeze. Everyone watches a college football game nationally. I wouldn't say the same thing about college basketball. People watch it because they are bored and turned on ESPN. If bball content becomes too expensive, I could see them switching to other programming options to fill the night slots. In short, I just don't see bball being a nightly draw.

Yes but something like 2/3 of the revenue for basketball comes post season and the fact remains TV ad revenue for basketball currently is 50% higher than football.  I think the revenue sharing must change.  Successful bball programs deserve a greater slice of the pie.

[brewcity77]

Yes but something like 2/3 of the revenue for basketball comes post season and the fact remains TV ad revenue for basketball currently is 50% higher than football.  I think the revenue sharing must change.  Successful bball programs deserve a greater slice of the pie.

It's bang for the buck. The average basketball broadcast runs what...2 1/2 hours? So a network brings in about $87,180 per hour of broadcast time. The average college football broadcast runs about 3 hours and brings in $343,000 per hour.

Now consider finding alternative programming. It's a lot easier for the networks to find programming that brings in $87K per hour than it is programming that brings in $343K per hour. At the end of the day, it has very little to do with net revenue and far more to do with how quickly they can make that money. That's why football gets so much more of the pie.

[butchbadger]

More people watched the Rose Bowl last year than the final 4.

The Rose Bowl was 3rd or 4th on the ladder of big bowl games and was nothing more than an exhibition game!


Football drives the money bus, not basketball. It's not changing anytime soon

[Benny B]

What you said:

More people watched the Rose Bowl last year than the final 4.

The Rose Bowl was 3rd or 4th on the ladder of big bowl games and was nothing more than an exhibition game!


Football drives the money bus, not basketball. It's not changing anytime soon

What I heard: Blabbity blab blab football bus blabbity blah.

[Dawson Rental]

Okay...I think there's one very important factor being ignored here. Let's do a little math.

There are 120 Division 1 football teams that let's say play an average of 13 games in a season. Because you need 2 participants in each game, the number of games is 60 x 13 = 780 games.

There are 345 Division 1 basketball teams that let's say play an average of 32 games in a season. Because you need 2 participants in each game, the number of games is about 172 x 32 = 5,504 games.

Now we come to advertising revenue per game. For football, $800M / 780 = $1.03M spent per game in advertising dollars for college football games.

For basketball, $1.2B / 5,504 = $218K spent per game in advertising dollars for college basketball games.

I hope that explains why college football is such a big draw. Because the average college football game brings in about FIVE TIMES the revenue of the average college basketball game.

Not every college basketball game is televised.  What would the numbers be when the Alcorn State vs. Jackson State type games are eliminated from the total of 5,504 games that you come up with?

[brewcity77]

Not every college basketball game is televised.  What would the numbers be when the Alcorn State vs. Jackson State type games are eliminated from the total of 5,504 games that you come up with?

Comparably they are probably the same as when you eliminated the Arkansas State v Buffalo games from the 780 football games. Any way you slice it, it's pretty clear why football is considered more valuable.

Think of it like sabermetrics. Mike Trout wasn't seen as the best player in baseball because he put up bigger numbers than Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera but because of his value against an average replacement (like bama's Value-Add).

There are very few programs that give you the value added by college football. Basketball, on the other hand, can be replaced far more easily. I'm guessing a baseball game, soccer game, or even new episode of SportsCenter would come a lot closer to balancing earnings off a basketball game than they would a football game.

[Chicos' Buzz Scandal Countdown]

Think of it like sabermetrics. Mike Trout wasn't seen as the best player in baseball because he put up bigger numbers than Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera but because of his value against an average replacement (like bama's Value-Add).

Huh?

[mu_hilltopper]

There's value in basketball beyond just the ad rev/game.  ESPN has a LOT of hours to fill, needs those thousands of BBall hours of content so they can force ESPN Ocho on the big cable networks.