The more you learn about the economics of college football, the more you want to puke. Because of the sport's popularity among the college football powers, the "schools" are able to get a very high price for tickets. But "tickets" is getting a new meaning in college football. It's very difficult to get a ticket without making a donation. And we're not talking a small donation. The University of Florida requires a minimum donation of $1,800 to be allowed to buy a ticket; a $14,500 donation is required to buy a ticket for a seat in a prized section of its stadium. Overall, the football powers bring in $500,000,000 a year from donations and tickets from loyal fans. To make matters worse, a fan gets an income tax deduction of 80% of his donation. You can thank Congress for that, as the IRS has tried to overturn the deductability of these "donations".
Another indication of the corruption that football has brought to some colleges is demonstrated at the University of Oregon. Top-ranked students in its Honors College receive
scholarships “of about $3,000. But a full scholarship for a football
player including tuition, room and board, books, food, and all of the
rest, is probably worth $40,000 or $50,000."
Do you think something's wrong here? I wonder how much Romans had to pay for the gladiatorial contests.
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