How Much Is UConn Football Worth?

[Dooley]

Even after 3 eye-popping awful seasons, including 2018 with FBS' worst defense of all-time, UConn football (yes, football) is still a valuable brand/commodity. According to the Wall Street Journal, UConn is the 70th most valuable football program in the country (ranks 3rd in the AAC behind the Florida programs).

Take these valuations for what they're worth, but it's a pretty remarkable ranking considering UConn has had 8 consecutive losing seasons while playing some of the worst football in the sport's history. UConn is quite literally a perfect buy low growth stock of football programs. With just a tiny bit of winning (please!), UConn very easily becomes the most valuable AAC football program. Then after a tiny bit of winning, put UConn in a P5 conference and watch the program's value absolutely explode.

(Thank you @JohnFSilver and Zac for including this in this morning's UConn Daily...please don't forward this to those NYC hedge fund UConn alums )

 

[YoungFree]

I don't normally trust WSJ crap unless it is financially tied. So I guess I can say the tea leaves look good....70th...with the product we put on the field ...it's amazing.

 

[uconndogs]

There's a market for college football in Conn. How big, how much - who the heck knows? But, if UCONN puts decent teams on the field and offers a fun game day experience there will be a decent following.

Unfortunately, the last half-dozen years have been simply awful and last season was bad by historical dimensions.

 

[RSTuthill]

Pretty sure this includes subsidies from institutions and students. False accounting.

 

[Dooley]

I don't normally trust WSJ crap unless it is financially tied. So I guess I can say the tea leaves look good....70th...with the product we put on the field ...it's amazing.

It really is. The fact that UConn can still get ~20K to the Rent to watch God awful losses is nothing short of amazing. With a few wins, the value/brand skyrockets. In a P5 conference, it's a middle-of-the-road valued program...and that's impressive considering our AD is absolutely, positively basketball driven.

 

[JohnFSilver]

Rich, just in revenue, UConn brought in $38 million in revenue than had a huge subsidy to get its budget in the $70 mil range. I am mobile, gotta check USA today link for numbers.

I dont haven his data, but that’s is likely without subsidy looking at it a second time

 

[RSTuthill]

Rich, just in revenue, UConn brought in $38 million in revenue than had a huge subsidy to get its budget in the $70 mil range. I am mobile, gotta check USA today link for numbers.

I dont haven his data, but that’s is likely without subsidy looking at it a second time

I need to see an accounting of that revenue number. Football only. Likewise Football Program Expenditures. I refuse to believe that the FB program makes money, without accounting gimmickry, until I see the numbers in enough detail to peel back the onion and get down to the heart of the matter,

 

[Northbound]

Here's Revenue & Expenses (USAT data) - it's departmental info in aggregate - I'm mobile as well and can't dig, but I have a hard time believing that the football program is above water without a subsidy.

YEAR - 2017

REVENUE
TICKET SALES - $9,843,815
CONTRIBUTIONS - $5,666,522
RIGHTS / LICENSING - $24,501,727
STUDENT FEES - $8,280,611
SCHOOL FUNDS - $33,947,001
OTHER - $1,134,747

TOTAL REVENUES - $83,374,223

EXPENSES
COACHING / STAFF - $31,318,690
SCHOLARSHIPS - $16,406,406
FACILITIES / OVERHEAD - $2,735,703
OTHER - $32,661,021

TOTAL EXPENSES - $83,121,820

 

[Dooley]

Guys, you're getting a little off track here. This WSJ report isn't about how much net profit UConn football turns. It's a hypothetical valuation of what kind of hypothetical price tag UConn football would have if it were ever put up for hypothetical sale. They're looking into a number of different things to come up with their hypothetical numbers.

This is just another metric amongst a loooooooong list of metrics that shows that UConn and UConn football is alot more valuable to a P5 conference than fans, even some UConn fans, think.

 

[Northbound]

Guys, you're getting a little off track here. This WSJ report isn't about how much net profit UConn football turns. It's a hypothetical valuation of what kind of hypothetical price tag UConn football would have if it were ever put up for hypothetical sale. They're looking into a number of different things to come up with their hypothetical numbers.

This is just another metric amongst a loooooooong list of metrics that shows that UConn and UConn football is alot more valuable to a P5 conference than fans, even some UConn fans, think.

Correct completely hypothetical AKA BS

 

[Adios]

Correct completely hypothetical AKA BS

Then why do we have a 40,000 seat stadium? While FIU and FAU have stadiums that hold 20,000? Maybe because we have a much bigger market?

 

[UConn Dan]

Correct completely hypothetical AKA BS

It's a valuation hoss based on several metrics. If we start winning again, given our market size and brand, we have much more potential for growth.

Brewer’s study calculates what a college team would be worth on the open market if it could be bought and sold like a professional sports franchise. Brewer analyzes each program’s revenues and expenses along with cash-flow adjustments, risk assessments and growth projections.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Here's Revenue & Expenses (USAT data) - it's departmental info in aggregate - I'm mobile as well and can't dig, but I have a hard time believing that the football program is above water without a subsidy.

YEAR - 2017

REVENUE
TICKET SALES - $9,843,815
CONTRIBUTIONS - $5,666,522
RIGHTS / LICENSING - $24,501,727
STUDENT FEES - $8,280,611
SCHOOL FUNDS - $33,947,001
OTHER - $1,134,747

TOTAL REVENUES - $83,374,223

EXPENSES
COACHING / STAFF - $31,318,690
SCHOLARSHIPS - $16,406,406
FACILITIES / OVERHEAD - $2,735,703
OTHER - $32,661,021

TOTAL EXPENSES - $83,121,820

"Other" $32M

Glad we cleared that up.

 

[RSTuthill]

Guys, you're getting a little off track here. This WSJ report isn't about how much net profit UConn football turns. It's a hypothetical valuation of what kind of hypothetical price tag UConn football would have if it were ever put up for hypothetical sale. They're looking into a number of different things to come up with their hypothetical numbers.

This is just another metric amongst a loooooooong list of metrics that shows that UConn and UConn football is alot more valuable to a P5 conference than fans, even some UConn fans, think.

True, but the underlying premise about the valuation is that the FB program shows a profit and can generate free cash flow if operated like any other enterprise -- which, of course, it cannot. Thus the valuation is fundamentally incorrect, and in this case the result is completely skewed by huge subsidies. Let's not get too excited about being valued above anyone else unless a comparison is made without subsidies.

 

[Dooley]

True, but the underlying premise about the valuation is that the FB program shows a profit and can generate free cash flow if operated like any other enterprise -- which, of course, it cannot. Thus the valuation is fundamentally incorrect, and in this case the result is completely skewed by huge subsidies. Let's not get too excited about being valued above anyone else unless a comparison is made without subsidies.

Thanks @UConn Dan for this...

Brewer’s study calculates what a college team would be worth on the open market if it could be bought and sold like a professional sports franchise. Brewer analyzes each program’s revenues and expenses along with cash-flow adjustments, risk assessments and growth projections.

We're not talking about accounting principles or subsidies or any other kind book keeping practice. This is merely a hypothetical situation that looks at a number of factors to come up with a dollar figure price tag for each program. UConn's brand strength, facilities, huge fanbase that sits in the center of the most populated place in the country, and growth projections (nowhere to go but up!)...all at play here.

All this is is another reminder of just how strong the UConn brand is and, with a couple of wins, how big UConn football can potentially become. In other words, this is good news for us UConn fans.

 

[Dooley]

Correct completely hypothetical AKA BS

Are you a UConn fan? If yes, you can relax, this is something positive that shows, again, how big the UConn brand is and how much growth potential UConn has. If no, sorry to disappoint you.

 

[RSTuthill]

Thanks @UConn Dan for this...

Brewer’s study calculates what a college team would be worth on the open market if it could be bought and sold like a professional sports franchise. Brewer analyzes each program’s revenues and expenses along with cash-flow adjustments, risk assessments and growth projections.

We're not talking about accounting principles or subsidies or any other kind book keeping practice. This is merely a hypothetical situation that looks at a number of factors to come up with a dollar figure price tag for each program. UConn's brand strength, facilities, huge fanbase that sits in the center of the most populated place in the country, and growth projections (nowhere to go but up!)...all at play here.

All this is is another reminder of just how strong the UConn brand is and, with a couple of wins, how big UConn football can potentially become. In other words, this is good news for us UConn fans.

Would have to be one helluva growth projection to get from a huge negative present value to a significantly positive future value. Just sayin' ....

 

[Dooley]

Would have to be one helluva growth projection to get from a huge negative present value to a significantly positive future value. Just sayin' ....

Now you're getting it! UConn's brand is absolutely huge and the school sits dead center in the highest populated pocket in the entire country. The growth potential is absolutely enormous. Now if only we could win a few more games and start to tap into it a tiny bit!!

 

[Northbound]

Are you a UConn fan? If yes, you can relax, this is something positive that shows, again, how big the UConn brand is and how much growth potential UConn has. If no, sorry to disappoint you.

It's fiction that you want to take as fact.

I've been a UConn fan for a very long time, I'm not so insecure that I look for everything to validate the existence of a athletic program. By far the worst thing about the football program is that the football fanbase has the worst inferiority complex in college football - it's comical.

Take off the blue glasses or don't I could care less either way.

 

[HuskyDogArt]

Here's Revenue & Expenses (USAT data) - it's departmental info in aggregate - I'm mobile as well and can't dig, but I have a hard time believing that the football program is above water without a subsidy.

YEAR - 2017

REVENUE
TICKET SALES - $9,843,815
CONTRIBUTIONS - $5,666,522
RIGHTS / LICENSING - $24,501,727
STUDENT FEES - $8,280,611
SCHOOL FUNDS - $33,947,001
OTHER - $1,134,747

TOTAL REVENUES - $83,374,223

EXPENSES
COACHING / STAFF - $31,318,690
SCHOLARSHIPS - $16,406,406
FACILITIES / OVERHEAD - $2,735,703
OTHER - $32,661,021

TOTAL EXPENSES - $83,121,820

The coaching staff gets 31 million? Nick gets 70 million...

 

[RSTuthill]

Now you're getting it! UConn's brand is absolutely huge and the school sits dead center in the highest populated pocket in the entire country. The growth potential is absolutely enormous. Now if only we could win a few more games and start to tap into it a tiny bit!!

I was being sarcastic, sorry, should have tagged it with an emoji. Let's see the numbers and then we can have a debate.

 

[HuskyDogArt]

"Other" $32M

Glad we cleared that up.

The $32 'other' is Randy's other pay...so he can be near Sabin's $70Milllion

 

[Dooley]

It's fiction that you want to take as fact.

I've been a UConn fan for a very long time, I'm not so insecure that I look for everything to validate the existence of a athletic program. By far the worst thing about the football program is that the football fanbase has the worst inferiority complex in college football - it's comical.

Take off the blue glasses or don't I could care less either way.

You seem like alot of fun.

 

[Dooley]

I was being sarcastic, sorry, should have tagged it with an emoji. Let's see the numbers and then we can have a debate.

I know you were.

 

[RSTuthill]

It's fiction that you want to take as fact.

Can't speak for the BY'er that you are replying to, but the thing that I find irritating about the analysis is that it perpetuates the myth that football funds other programs and the corrollary myth that CFB programs around the country are viable financial enterprises. The vast majority lose money and are justified only by the unproved hypothesis that they provide great institutional advertising. I think it would be great if we could finally get some numbers to talk about.