Volleyball-A revenue producing sport?

[pogo]

I was just wondering does volleyball break even or make a little money after all is said and done. What kind of attendance levels and or advertising would make it a revenue producing sport. Years ago baseball was at the break even and maybe make a little point, although the attendance has dropped off lately.

[SpanglerFan316]

This is a complicated question because it depends on how the costs and revenue are allocated. Given how my posts have been received recently, I will not say anything more.

[1972Shocker]

My guess is probably not, but as Spangler said it may depend on how your allocate things.

Assuming revenue is ticket sales, advertising/sponsorships, Match Club memberships (not sure how many members there are) and the Volleyball 101 fundraiser, but exlcudes any SASO support and only direct expenses including Coaching Staff compensation and benefits, tuition, books, room and board for 12 players, team travel expenses, recruiting expenses, uniforms and equipment my guess is that they probably do not break even.

What it would take I don't really know, but I think we would need to see a substantial jump in paid attendance to get there.

Take all this as a wild-xxx guess. I am particularly clueless on how much there advertising and sponsorship revenues are.

Are there any financial reports available to the public that would provide more color to this? I'm not aware of any, but that doesn't mean they don't exist. Maybe an e-mail to Becky Endicott might provide you with more useful information.

[The Mad Hatter]

http://www2.indystar.com/NCAA_financial_reports/revenue_stat/show?school_id=50

This database has the athletic department expenses and revenues from the 2004-2005 season. It only has the categories of Football (for schools that have it), Men's Basketball, Women's Basketball, and Other.

Since baseball, volleyball, track & field, etc. all get lumped into other, it is hard to know specifics of those programs.

However, one would imagine that many of the expenses of volleyball would be very similar to that of women's basketball. Women's basketball $810,518 and brought in only $81,376. Even if volleyball made WAY more than women's basketball, I don't think it would be any where close to breaking even.

Obviously, once you include SASO donations and other non program specific revenue streams, the athletic budget is in the black, but basketball and baseball are the only programs at WSU with much chance to break even or make money without those revenue streams.

[1972Shocker]

However, one would imagine that many of the expenses of volleyball would be very similar to that of women's basketball. Women's basketball $810,518 and brought in only $81,376. Even if volleyball made WAY more than women's basketball, I don't think it would be any where close to breaking even.

That's from 2004-05 huh! Probably has gotten worse since then, 'cept we may have saved a few bucks with our short roster last year. Right now VB has about 5 times the actual attendance as Women's BB and maybe 3 times the paid attendance. Still as you point out, we would be a long way from breaking even.

Nevertheless, those numbers are even worse than I would have guestimated.

:shock:

Obviously, SASO is the key and the key to SASO is Men's Basketball.