New Financial Report Shows UNC Athletics Made Record Revenue in 2023-24 Year

The newest financial report from the UNC athletic department to the NCAA, chronicling the department’s funds for the 2023-24 academic year, shows record-high revenue numbers for the school. In total, the department reported approximately $164.4 million in revenue against approximately $155.9 million in total expenses for an $8.5 million profit. The previous two academic years saw UNC record much slimmer profits: approximately $273,000 in 2022-23 and approximately $2.3 million in 2021-22. The department reported deficits in the 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21 years.

The revenue number represents a dramatic increase from years past. Department revenue totaled roughly $122 million in 2021-22 and $139 million in 2022-23. That’s an increase of 34 percent over the span of two years.

As has been the case in prior reports, the largest contributor to the department’s revenue total was media rights. Nearly $34 million of revenue came from radio, TV, internet, digital and e-commerce rights. An additional $31.2 million came directly from ticket sales, with football and men’s basketball making up nearly $29 million of that total. Contributions to the department – including amounts received from individuals, corporations, foundations and other organizations – totaled roughly $27.7 million. Of that total, football received $7 million. Baseball was the next highest beneficiary, receiving $1.1 million.

Football and men’s basketball were the only sports to turn profits. The football program reported nearly $67 in revenue against $40 million in expenses, while men’s basketball reported $32 million in revenue against $13.4 million in expenses. Six other sports reported revenues of more than $1 million: baseball, women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s lacrosse and women’s track and field and cross country (track and field and cross country are reported together).

The largest chunk of UNC’s athletic expenses came from coaching salaries: nearly $31 million of the $155.9 million total. An additional $27.2 million went to compensation for support staff and administrators. Nearly $20 million in expenses were classified as “direct overhead and administrative,” including expenses for facilities maintenance, security and equipment repair. Roughly $16 million went toward athletic student aid, such as summer school and tuition discounts or waivers. Almost $13 million was devoted to team travel.

The football program spent more than $1.5 million solely on recruiting in 2023-24, making it the only program to surpass $1 million in recruiting expenses. Women’s basketball, which reported the second-highest recruiting expense total, sits at roughly $322,000. Men’s basketball and wrestling were the only other programs to report more than $100,000 in recruiting expenses. Football also reported $1 million in severance payments, $2.6 million in travel expenses and $1.7 million in equipment expenses.

Football head coach Mack Brown had the highest salary of any coach on campus: $4.8 million, according to the financial report. His 10 assistant coaches made a combined $8.3 million. Men’s basketball head coach Hubert Davis is the only other coach with a reported salary exceeding $1 million: the report lists his 2023-24 salary as $2.5 million.

Other high-profile coaching salaries include:

Scott Forbes (Baseball) – $688,822
Courtney Banghart (Women’s basketball) – $798,361
Erin Matson (Field hockey) – $305,166
Anson Dorrance (Women’s soccer): $359,123

Notably, softball head coach Megan Smith Lyon made $638,418 – the second-most of any women’s head coach – in her first year on the job.

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications

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New Financial Report Shows UNC Athletics Made Record Revenue in 2023-24 Year

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