SEC Shatters Revenue Records with $808 Million Payout
By Darian Kelly
Last Updated on February 12, 2025
Last Thursday, Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey released the revenue distribution amounts for the conference’s 16 universities. For the 2023-24 fiscal year, which ended on August 31, 2024, the SEC distributed $808.4 million, an increase from $741 million in 2022-23. This payout includes Oklahoma and Texas, the newest member schools that joined the conference in July. Out of that amount, $790.87 million was distributed directly from the conference office. An additional $17.7 million was accumulated by those teams that partook in bowl games during the 2023-24 season.
“The SEC’s annual distribution of revenue helps member universities maintain strong athletics programs while supporting the academic and athletic ambitions of thousands of student-athletes across the conference,” Sankey said.
An average of $52.5 million was distributed to full-year member schools, not including bowl expenses maintained by the participating universities. This was an increase from the fiscal year 2022-23, where the average amount paid out was $51.3 million, and compared to the fiscal year 2018-19, where the average payout to member schools was slightly over $44.6 million. The total financial allocation for the 14 schools receiving a full share comes from revenue streams such as the NCAA Championships, the SEC Football Championship, the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament, the College Football Playoff, postseason bowl games, and TV contracts.
“As the entire college athletics enterprise works through significant change, SEC universities are uniquely positioned to provide new financial benefits for student-athletes while continuing to deliver transformative, life-changing college experiences,” Sankey said. “Beyond providing an exceptional, debt-free education, this experience includes world-class support in coaching, training, academic counseling, medical care, mental health support, nutrition, life-skills development and post-eligibility healthcare coverage for SEC student-athletes.”
Oklahoma and Texas received $27.5 million each as a transition payout compiled from television agreements and refundable application fees to join the conference from a prior fiscal year. The amount distributed does not account for an additional $8.1 million in NCAA and SEC grants split among the 14 institutions that were full-time conference members throughout the fiscal year 2022-23. The SEC revenue should continue to grow as Oklahoma and Texas move beyond the first year in the conference.
