College Sports At A Glance
By Kristi DoshLast Updated on June 5, 2014
Just how big is college sports? Here are some facts at a glance:
- In 2010, the estimated retail value of college licensed merchandise was $4.3 billion, second only to MLB.
- With a 17.2 rating, the 2010 BCS National Championship football game was the second highest rated sporting event on TV for the year.
- College games and events have more total hours of on-air coverage than any other major sport.
- Over 100 million people attended a college sporting event in 2009, more than any other league.
- With more than 172 million fans, college sports has the largest fan base of all sports.
- College sports has more than 77 million female fans, more than any professional sports league. (Note: College sports’ female fan base is bigger than the entire NASCAR fan base.)
- College has 17 million fans between the ages of 18 to 24.
- Over 29 million college sports fans earn more than $100,000 annually.
- College has a diverse audience, with 57 million fans who self-identify as a minority.
These fascinating facts are courtesy of friend of the site, Andrew Giangola, a VP at IMG College.
IMG College Facts
- IMG College represents comprehensive media and marketing opportunities across multiple platforms at over 90 colleges and universities, leading conferences, and the NCAA.
- IMG College/The Collegiate Licensing Company serves as the exclusive licensing agent for more than 200 colleges, universities, bowl games, athletic conferences, The Heisman Trophy, and the NCAA.
- IMG College partners with 39 of the 72 BCS schools and conferences.
- IMG College manages nearly 30,000 hours of radio programming each year, with over 1,700 affiliates across all networks coast-to-coast.
- IMG College has programming syndicated in 49 of the top 50 radio markets and Sirius/XM.
- IMG College manages nearly 5,000 hours of local television programming each year with over 200 affiliates.
- IMG College creates activation opportunities at 1,500+ games for game day experiences at football and basketball games.
- IMG College is the largest publisher of college sports publications and the largest manager of official university athletic websites.
IMG College Quick Stats
- Total IMG College Multimedia Rights Partners: 97
- Total IMG College Licensing Partners: 204
- Total IMG College Audio Broadcasts: 8,875
- Total IMG College Audio On-Air Hours: 30,000
- Total IMG College Audio Affiliates: 1,781
- Total IMG College TV Broadcasts: 2,208
- Total IMG College TV On-Air Hours: 5,000
- Total IMG College TV Affiliates: 277
- Total IMG College Stadium Seating Partners: 40
- Total IMG College Publications (programs, yearbooks, periodicals): 200+
- Total IMG College Employee: 700+
Matt
August 11, 2011Some of the stats are obvious. If you include all the sports clearly there is going to be a bigger fan base. There are only between 30-32 professional franchises in the 4 ‘major’ sports.