ESPN has a story from Forbes about the most valuable college basketball teams in the U.S. The Tar Heels are tops with a $26 million value, which sounds low to me. Check it out:
The North Carolina Tar Heels basketball team is the most valuable in the country, worth $26 million. We base our valuations on what the basketball programs contribute to four important beneficiaries: their university (money generated by basketball that goes to the institution for academic purposes, including scholarship payments for basketball players); athletic department (the net profit generated by the basketball program retained by the department); conference (the distribution of tournament revenue); and local communities (incremental spending by visitors to the county during the regular season that’s attributable to the program).
Last season the Tar Heels posted a $16.9 million profit and, thanks in part to a lucrative merchandising agreement with Nike, contributed $800,000 to the university for academics. With Michael Jordan’s jersey hanging from the Dean Smith Center’s rafters and the basketball team a perennial contender for the national championship, basketball is the cornerstone of the university’s athletic department.
The Dookies come in fifth, which also seems low to me. But note the spending by visitors:
Duke is the fifth most valuable team, worth $22.6 million. The Durham Convention & Visitors Bureau estimates total spending by visitors to Duke Blue Devils men’s home games last season topped $11.2 million–more than any other basketball program in the country. Duke’s success (three national titles during the past 17 years) has enabled head coach Mike Krzyzewski to become a brand unto himself, appearing in commercials for American Express and Chevrolet, a division of General Motors. Rivals complain Coach K’s commercial success is an unfair recruiting advantage.