As college football hopes to come up with a way to capture some of the money that is currently going to players and not to programs, one way to balance budgets is to make more money directly.
As a result, the NCAA could be allowing college football (and other sports) to take advantage of a fresh revenue stream.
Via the Associated Press, an NCAA committee has proposed allowing ads on uniforms. If adopted, commercial logos could appear on football uniforms by 2026.
Under the proposal, schools could add two commercial logos on uniforms for “non-NCAA championship competition.” One additional logo would be allowed on “equipment” (for football, presumably the helmet) used by players.
Currently, only the logos of the manufacturers of the apparel are permitted on player uniforms.
“The committee’s introduction of this proposal demonstrates the continued efforts by the NCAA to modernize rules where appropriate within Division I,” Josh Whitman, Illinois A.D. and chair of the NCAA’s Division I Administrative Committee, said, per the AP. “As we move into a new era of Division I athletics, in which student-athletes can receive unprecedented financial benefits and support from their schools, it is appropriate for NCAA members to identify and consider additional opportunities for schools to generate additional revenue to fully support those benefits.”
Regardless, the placement of ads on football uniforms will cross a line for many fans. The NCAA surely knows this, but it’s become critical to create fresh revenue streams. And so the NCAA will bank (literally) on fans huffing and puffing, but ultimately dealing with it.
For the NFL, the potential normalization of ads on college football uniforms will open the door for a new pro football revenue stream, too. Frankly, it’s surprising the NFL hasn’t done it yet.
Once the NCAA does it and the world doesn’t end in response (of course, the world could end for entirely different reasons), the NFL may finally decide to sell ad space on the uniform and the helmet — beyond the ad space that already has been sold to Nike.
