Boosting the Bottom Line Through Athletics

When the University of Arizona's men's basketball team takes on California State University, Long Beach today, it will mark the beginning of the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s wildly popular and lucrative men’s basketball tournament known as March Madness. The Wildcats—a contender to make a run for the national championship given their high seed and strong regular season record—are an anomaly at Arizona: a team that generates positive revenue for the university even as the athletics department struggles across the board. After the discovery of a $177 million shortfall, caused by a flawed budget model and overspending on strategic initiatives, Arizona President Robert Robbins warned that “draconian cuts” could be coming—particularly in the athletics department, which operates at a loss and has been slow to pay back a $55 million loan from the university during the coronavirus pandemic. Individual sports, Robbins warned in November, could be on the chopping block.