Forbes: The business of women's college basketball

[pap49cba]

LINK

 

[alexrgct]

Kind of a weird analysis. It explains (only anecdotally) that if you spend more and that spend results in more on-court success, it can keep losses low. But it doesn't explain on a business level why athletic departments should be expected to keep losing assets in their portfolios at all.

I also don't think the accounting is right, or at least not debatable. We've seen a number of different numbers reported for UConn, the variance for which often has to do with how shared revenue streams (such as merchandising or booster donations) are allocated to different products. Additionally, one of the multi-million dollars donations to the practice facility was made by a friend of the women's program. There are also overall brand equity implications that very successful programs like uconn and tennessee have enjoyed. I would expect a business-oriented publication such as Forbes to discuss and research issues like these. What was actually published was kind of empty and uninteresting.

 

[sarals24]

I agree. Kind of a weird article without a point. So...winning doesn't necessarily translate into higher revenues, ok. I wonder why Vandy is up there in terms of not losing as much money?

Shocked that coaches salaries didn't make it in there. That seems to be a big topic.

 

[alexrgct]

I agree. Kind of a weird article without a point. So...winning doesn't necessarily translate into higher revenues, ok. I wonder why Vandy is up there in terms of not losing as much money?

Shocked that coaches salaries didn't make it in there. That seems to be a big topic.

Yep. Vandy, I believe, is a moderate spend, moderate on-court success story. How do they fit into the picture? Do they enjoy some residual benefit of the Lady Vol program making WBB more popular in TN than in other areas, or is it something else entirely? Would be interesting to understand.

And yes, the issue of the the market value of a successful WBB coach not being tied to revenues or profits is also a topic worth discussing. Although prolonged success on-court can keep losses down or have other benefits, clearly in Baylor's case, those kinds of returns haven't been realized yet. So what does Baylor perceive as the value justifying a seven-figure salary for its head coach? I'm sure they have a perspective worth discussing...maybe in an article or column in a magazine like Forbes even!

 

[vtcwbuff]

Athletic departments keep losing assets in their portfolio for a number of reasons, not the least of which is Title IX. Another important thing to consider is that for most schools, women's sports attract students that are also athletes. That's not always the case for the top BB schools.

Consider a team with a mediocre coach and a mediocre won loss record. They probably have expenses similar to a more successful team, but if they get no media revenue and little ticket revenue it can be a bigger cost burden than a successful team with a highly paid coach that packs the house and gets lots of TV time. At least I think that was the writers poorly defined point.

 

[sarals24]

Shoddy, shoddy research and analysis. Interesting topic. As a journalism major, I do not approve!