You don't understand university sports revenues and expenses.

Feel free to download a breakdown of revenues and expenses for the university of your choice at: https://ope.ed.gov/athletics/#/

You are going to find that almost every school is net neutral with respect to their sports programs. Football and basketball typically funding all other sports.

I haven't looked at the entire dataset, but looking at the major schools that are close to me:

Expenses: 12M, 25M, 13M, 70M

Revenue: 6M, 30M, 13M, 44M

1/4 is making a slight profit. 1/4 is breaking even. 2/4 are making a major loss.

A Kennesaw State University (00157700 )| Total Enrollment: 27,300

B Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus | Total Enrollment: 14,476

C Georgia State University | Total Enrollment: 22,276

D University of Georgia | Total Enrollment: 27,877

These figures don’t add up:

“University of Georgia Athletics approved a new budget for the 2022 fiscal year on Friday. The budget is set at $150,290,994, which is $7.7 million more than in 2019 and $3 million short of the 2020 budget.

Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks told media that the 2020 budget shortfall is currently $30 million and was previously $53 million amid the COVID-19 pandemic.”

https://ugawire.usatoday.com/2021/05/28/georgia-foootball-ug...

Later in the article, it states that the stadiums were at partial capacity (mid 2021), so once stadiums went back to full capacity revenue surely increase significantly.

I'm surprised by this and I am guessing it is due to a covid blip. Historically most athletics programs run revenue neutral.

Sports teams are a profit center. Season tickets are hundreds or even a thousand dollars. And then there's the absurd money they make at the concession stands and merchandising.