Is college sports a sustainable business for most universities?

Question

I'm wondering how some school finance sports like track and field, swimming or golf.

Answer 1

There was an excellent article in Sports Illustrated recently on this very issue.

Basically, most "minor" sports, such track & field, swimming, and golf, are subsidized by the "revenue" sports, which are basketball and football. Many of these programs are virtual cash cows; i.ei. Louisville basketball provided $17+ million in profit to the university's athletic program. Football contributed a lesser amount, but it was still several million dollars.

So much for the "big" successful university programs. Most programs don't turn a profit, especially if you deduct "student athletic fees," which are mandatory for full-time students, and which can be several hundreds per year, per student. Add to the the costs associated with owning a football stadium (which is used, at most, 7 times a year), and most university athletic programs do NOT produce a profit. State subsidies, and contributions by sports-crazed alumni make up the rest.