Skip to main content

How much revenue did Penn State Athletics lose in 2021? Financial report reveals pandemic's impact

IMG_1698 5 (1)by:David Eckert02/23/22

davideckert98

On3 image
Penn State Nittany Lions flags fly in front of the student section before a Lions home game. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)

Penn State Athletics reported a deficit of $23,890,987 for the 2021 fiscal year, which ranged from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021.

Bearing the brunt of the pandemic’s financial impact, the 2021 fiscal year marks a significant departure from the previous fiscal year, in which PSU Athletics reported an excess of about $7 million.

After reeling in more than $40 million in ticket sales during the 2020 fiscal year, Penn State reported a loss of about $1 million in that category in 2021, with fans unable to attend events due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Penn State football brought in $41,506,297 in revenue in 2021. Men’s basketball followed at $8,569,729. Men’s ice hockey posted the third-highest revenue of Penn State’s 31 Division I programs, at $2,201,709.

Top 10

  1. 1

    UK upsets Duke

    Mark Pope leads Kentucky to first Champions Classic win since 2019

    Trending
  2. 2

    Second CFP Top 25

    Newest CFP rankings are out

  3. 3

    Kirby Smart reacts

    UGA coach responds to CFP Committee snub

  4. 4

    Nico Iamaleava

    Tennessee QB dealing with concussion ahead of Georgia game

  5. 5

    Couches on fire

    State Street burning couches after Kentucky upsets Duke

View All

The chart below illustrates how the Total Operating Revenue for those three programs compared between the 2020 and 2021 fiscal years.

Sport FY 2020FY 2021
Football$101,791,729$41,506,297
Men’s Basketball $10,527,189$8,569,729
Men’s Ice Hockey$5,075,906$2,201,709

Football and men’s basketball operated at profits of $5,437,140 and $1,375,287, respectively, in the 2021 fiscal year. The other 29 Division I programs combined to produce a deficit of just over $30 million.

RELATED: DE Dominic Nichols recaps recent visits, including Penn State

Penn State Athletics Financial Quick Hits For FY 2021

  • Penn State spent about $12.5 million less on football in 2021 relative to 2020.
  • As an athletic department, spending went down from roughly $158 million to $130 million amid the impact of the pandemic.
  • PSU dished out $17,521,278 on football coaching salaries during the last fiscal year. Men’s basketball salaries cost the athletic department $3,049,926.
  • Severance payments cost the athletic department $427,930 in total in FY 2021, with $381,883 of that coming from football.
  • Penn State spent $836,322 on recruiting in the last fiscal year. Football accounted for $651,388 of that total.
  • Nittany Lion football received $27,384,582 in media rights during the last fiscal year.
  • Men’s ice hockey received $1,866,511 from endowment and investments income, the most of any Penn State sport.
  • Football received and used $5,786,232 from “individuals, corporations, associtions, foundations, clubs or other organizations designated for the opoerations of the athletics program.”
  • The Nittany Lion football program did not play in a bowl game after the 2020 season. As a result, there was no bowl revenue, which amounted to $2,441,756 when PSU played in the Cotton Bowl in 2019. However, the athletic department also dished out about $3.5 million in bowl expenses for that fiscal year.

You may also like