NCAA eyes financial rewards for women's March Madness teams
08/06/2024 02:01 PM
The NCAA is moving forward with a plan to financially reward women's basketball teams for their success in the March Madness tournament. The initiative, driven by a new media rights deal with ESPN, will introduce performance units for the women’s tournament, mirroring a long-established system in the men's tournament.
"Unless something very odd happens, and I don't expect that it will, the finance committees have already signed off on creating a units program for the women's tournament," NCAA President Charlie Baker told Doug Feinberg of The Associated Press in an interview at the Paris Olympics, highlighting the significance of the new media rights deal, which values women's basketball at $65 million per tournament — approximately 10 times more than the previous contract.
"That made it possible for us to do the most important piece of this," Baker said. "Being able to define what a units program would look like based on the revenue generated by the tournament."
The Division I Board of Directors is expected to introduce a proposal for performance units, with a final vote slated for January. If approved, the financial incentives will commence with the 2025 tournament. The move is seen as a major step toward addressing long-standing criticisms over the lack of a similar revenue-sharing system for the women’s tournament.
Women’s March Madness units could be worth millions
Historically, the NCAA has shared March Madness revenue with its member schools through the men's tournament. For example, the 2018 men's tournament generated $844.3 million in television and marketing rights, primarily from a contract with CBS and Turner Sports. The latest extension of that deal is valued at $8.8 billion over eight years.
In the men's tournament, each team that reaches the NCAA Tournament earns a "unit" of revenue, which is then distributed to the team's conference. The longer a team's tournament run, the more units and revenue their conference receives. Each unit was worth about $2 million in the 2023 men's tournament. The distribution of units is typically paid out over six years, although college leaders may opt for a shorter payout period for the women's units, potentially increasing their immediate value.
The proposal for the women’s tournament is expected to reflect this system closely, ensuring that the financial success of teams translates into tangible rewards for their respective conferences. The adjustment comes in the wake of the women's tournament’s most successful year ever, which featured a record audience of 18.7 million viewers for the championship game between South Carolina and Iowa. This viewership surpassed the men’s title game between UConn and Purdue by nearly 3 million viewers and saw record attendance figures.
Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico stressed the importance of investment in women's basketball and its recent growth.
"I think we have shown these last few years how exciting our game is and what happens when the investment is made," she said. "This is just another example of the growth of our game and how there is no better time to be part of women's basketball."
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