The Univ. of Washington athletics operating budget for FY24 -- which covers the 2023-24 academic year -- illustrates the financial situation of an athletic department that “dealt with massive upheaval, leadership changes and the earliest impacts of conference realignment,” according to Andy Yamashita of the SEATTLE TIMES. The athletic department “blew past its projections,” earning $190.94M in operating revenue. Yet the athletic department “still suffered” a $9.21M net loss after “racking up” $200.15M in operating expenses, nearly $50M more than in 2023. UW’s athletic department has operated at a net loss during three of the previous four years. However, Washington’s net losses in FY24 were nearly $5M more than it endured in 2022 and the COVID-impacted 2021 financial year. The majority of Washington’s operating revenue “came from three sources during FY24: Ticket sales, media-rights revenue and distributions and contributions (donations),” as indicated below:
- UW made $34.79M in ticket sales during FY24, $7M more than it did during FY23. Football accounted for $31.02M.
- UW generated $44.26M through media-rights revenue and distributions from the NCAA and Pac-12 -- around $5M more than during FY23.
- UW received $41.62M in contributions.
Yamashita noted more than $28M of UW’s total contributions received in FY24 were “designated exclusively for football.” UW produced $39.34M more in operating revenue during FY24 than it did in FY23, but the “gains in its three largest revenue-generating sources amount to just” $15.35M. The additional revenue came from an “unexpected and unsustainable source -- buyouts.” Those buyouts include football coach Kalen DeBoer, AD Jen Cohen, her replacement Troy Dannan, baseball coach Jason Kelly and gymnastics coach Jen Llewellyn. UW also paid $14M in realignment expenses during FY24, although it “isn’t counted as an operational expense” (SEATTLE TIMES, 3/14).
