Business Insider ranks the 23 universities that make at least $125 million annually from its sports teams and Ohio State’s rank may shock you. Business Insider does a great job of ranking teams from the entire country, but I know we primarily focus on the Big Ten here and I wanted to break down the top five from our favorite conference.
A fun fact that everyone saw coming is that the Big Ten and SEC dominate this list with seven Big Ten programs making an appearance and 12 teams from the SEC also on this list. It is interesting to also note that there are 1,062 college programs in the NCAA and only 396 made at least $10 million in 2022 from its athletic department. There is a clear divide between the haves and have nots, with another shocking number of only 56 programs making making at least $100 million in revenue.
One last fact before we dive into the top five Big Ten is that Ohio State not only tops the Big Ten list but the list in its entirety.
5
University of Iowa
Iowa
National Rank: 22nd
Average Annual Athletics Revenue: $129 million
Football Revenue: $70 million
Men’s Basketball Revenue: $11 million
Women’s Basketball Revenue: $2 million
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4
University of Wisconsin
Wisconsin
National Rank: 21st
Average Annual Athletics Revenue: $130 million
Football Revenue: $75 million
Men’s Basketball Revenue: $15 million
Women’s Basketball Revenue: $680,000
3
Penn State University
Penn State
National Rank: 11th
Average Annual Athletics Revenue: $148 million
Football Revenue: $64 million
Men’s Basketball Revenue: $10 million
Women’s Basketball Revenue: $1 million
2
University of Michigan
Michigan
National Rank: Fifth
Average Annual Athletics Revenue: $170 million
Football Revenue: $110 million
Men’s Basketball Revenue: $17 million
Women’s Basketball Revenue: $426,000 million
1
Ohio State University
Ohio State
National Rank: First
Average Annual Athletics Revenue: $204 million
Football Revenue: $90 million
Men’s Basketball Revenue: $20 million
Women’s Basketball Revenue: $2 million
Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Josh Keatley on X.
