| Conference USA Members 2026-27 | 2026-27 | 2025-26 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delaware |  | CUSA | | CUSA |
| Florida International | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| Jacksonville State | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| Kennesaw State University | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| Liberty | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| Middle Tennessee State | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| Missouri State | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| New Mexico State | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| Sam Houston State | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| Western Kentucky | CUSA | CUSA | ||
| Louisiana Tech | Sun Belt | CUSA | ||
| Texas at El Paso | Mountain West | CUSA | ||
| Total Schools | 10 | 12 |
2025 Operating Results: Conference USA Schools
Per NCAA reporting, Conference USA schools averaged a net operating loss of $ 31 million per school in 2025. These losses were funded by booster contributions averaging $ 2 million per school and combined school support and student fees averaging $ 29 million per school:
2025 Operating Results ($) Conference USA Schools * | Operating Revenue | Operating Expenses | Operating Loss 2025 | Booster Contributions | Student Fees & School Support | Endowment & Investment | Surplus (Deficit) |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida International | 10,233,921 | 45,625,655 | -35,391,734 | 3,322,508 | 34,608,445 | 224,192 | 2,763,411 | |
| Jacksonville State | 9,076,775 | 36,596,563 | -27,519,788 | 3,911,343 | 23,546,804 | 540,989 | 479,348 | |
| Kennesaw State | 11,104,185 | 39,354,979 | -28,250,794 | 1,719,199 | 29,812,488 | - | 3,280,893 | |
| Middle Tennessee | 9,545,306 | 49,287,942 | -39,742,636 | 2,118,838 | 37,305,031 | 318,767 | - | |
| Missouri State | 6,752,203 | 37,407,928 | -30,655,725 | 2,593,328 | 27,754,219 | 308,178 | - | |
| New Mexico State | 10,738,954 | 39,700,707 | -28,961,753 | 2,594,203 | 26,236,429 | 58,138 | -72,983 | |
| Sam Houston State | 8,957,609 | 42,266,867 | -33,309,258 | 1,601,540 | 30,794,445 | 1,988,758 | 1,075,485 | |
| Western Kentucky | 12,131,221 | 40,028,339 | -27,897,118 | 2,170,377 | 25,726,741 | - | - | |
| Average per School | 9,817,522 | 41,283,623 | -31,466,101 | 2,503,917 | 29,473,075 | 429,878 | 940,769 |
* Operating Data not available for Delaware & Liberty
** Operating expenses for Jacksonville State do not include revenue sharing payments reported on 2025 NCAA filing.
2025 Operating Revenues: Conference USA Schools
Operating Revenues are sources of income received from exchange transactions. This is distinct from athletic department support such as booster contributions, student fees and school funding. This distinction is important when evaluating an organization’s ability to meet expenses.
2025 Operating Revenues Conference USA Schools ($) | Total Revenue | Ticket Sales | Game Guarantees | Media Rights | Conference & NCAA receipts | Licenses & Sponsorships | Other Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida International | 10,233,921 | 731,681 | 1,033,715 | 710,153 | 3,400,339 | 2,064,796 | 2,293,237 |
| Jacksonville State | 9,076,775 | 612,108 | 1,502,900 | 710,153 | 5,208,763 | - | 1,042,851 |
| Kennesaw State | 11,104,185 | 709,362 | 1,575,000 | 710,153 | 3,973,564 | 3,086,799 | 1,049,307 |
| Middle Tennessee | 9,545,306 | 1,257,302 | 1,709,500 | 710,153 | 3,689,698 | 1,779,405 | 399,248 |
| Missouri State | 6,752,203 | 884,202 | 545,000 | 710,153 | 2,860,420 | 933,663 | 818,765 |
| New Mexico State | 10,738,954 | 1,990,770 | 2,385,671 | 710,153 | 3,747,251 | 1,464,135 | 440,974 |
| Sam Houston State | 8,957,609 | 579,742 | 1,571,000 | 710,153 | 3,498,908 | 1,699,267 | 898,539 |
| Western Kentucky | 12,131,221 | 2,041,517 | 2,795,175 | 710,153 | 3,380,244 | 2,043,496 | 1,160,636 |
| Average per School ($) | 9,817,522 | 1,100,836 | 1,639,745 | 710,153 | 3,719,898 | 1,633,945 | 1,012,945 |
2025 Operating Expenses: Conference USA Schools
2025 Operating Expenses ($) Conference USA Schools 2025 | Total Expenses | Coaching Salaries | Admin Salaries | Athletic Scholarships | Game Guarantees | Travel, Uniforms & game costs | Facilities, overhead & administration | Recruiting | Athlete Medical, Meals & Benefits | Severance Payments | Other Expenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida International | 45,625,655 | 8,586,397 | 7,137,085 | 2,722,131 | 533,004 | 6,241,340 | 10,874,652 | 951,509 | 980,175 | 856,767 | 6,742,595 |
| Jacksonville State | 36,596,563 | 6,001,795 | 5,147,011 | 7,350,966 | 68,496 | 6,357,985 | 5,050,071 | 694,632 | 1,635,243 | - | 4,290,364 |
| Kennesaw State | 39,354,979 | 6,356,137 | 6,493,871 | 7,766,471 | 32,000 | 7,321,770 | 4,317,159 | 605,699 | 983,512 | 330,783 | 5,147,577 |
| Middle Tennessee | 49,287,942 | 7,976,491 | 6,104,711 | 9,874,085 | 580,139 | 5,679,740 | 12,046,911 | 636,681 | 2,507,960 | - | 3,881,224 |
| Missouri State | 37,407,928 | 7,038,948 | 4,722,062 | 7,249,622 | 152,736 | 6,610,565 | 7,932,001 | 704,071 | 495,368 | - | 2,502,555 |
| New Mexico State | 39,700,707 | 6,904,295 | 5,908,291 | 8,816,374 | 600,788 | 6,834,190 | 4,902,324 | 697,435 | 1,826,386 | - | 3,210,624 |
| Sam Houston State | 42,266,867 | 5,504,629 | 4,390,921 | 6,278,201 | 1,843,500 | 4,764,808 | 16,607,758 | 252,374 | 1,467,296 | - | 1,157,380 |
| Western Kentucky | 40,028,339 | 7,335,907 | 5,621,661 | 5,585,245 | 470,548 | 5,574,562 | 9,394,845 | 839,706 | 1,352,860 | - | 3,853,005 |
| Average per School ($) | 41,283,623 | 6,963,075 | 5,690,702 | 6,955,387 | 535,151 | 6,173,120 | 8,890,715 | 672,763 | 1,406,100 | 148,444 | 3,848,166 |
Operating expenses are expected to increase significantly in 2026 due to impact of revenue sharing and increased scholarship limits for all sports.
EADA Annual Operating Costs: Conference USA Schools 2022-25:
Per EADA (aka Title IX) reporting, average 2025 athletic department operating costs were $ 41 million for Conference USA schools, a 34% increase in expenses over a 3-year span:
| Athletic Department Annual Expenses * | FY 2025 ($) | FY 2024 ($) | FY 2023 ($) | FY 2022 ($) | 3-year % Increase |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  | | | | |
| Liberty | 62,067,210 | 69,076,595 | 62,539,066 | 57,423,638 | 8% |
| Delaware | 65,523,927 | 48,411,479 | 44,957,890 | 41,625,478 | 57% |
| Middle Tennessee State | 40,006,612 | 43,275,343 | 35,578,198 | 35,614,512 | 12% |
| Florida International | 42,392,051 | 41,981,914 | 41,445,861 | 35,610,534 | 19% |
| New Mexico State | 37,088,598 | 38,923,972 | 35,828,331 | 31,168,241 | 19% |
| Western Kentucky | 31,319,105 | 36,875,120 | 25,400,653 | 28,545,295 | 10% |
| Kennesaw State | 42,344,569 | 32,926,067 | 30,783,810 | 20,022,946 | 111% |
| Jacksonville State | 34,639,572 | 29,060,404 | 22,159,540 | 18,344,447 | 89% |
| Sam Houston State | 31,955,712 | 26,567,953 | 22,475,641 | 19,861,089 | 61% |
| Missouri State | 28,059,311 | 25,259,555 | 22,698,010 | 20,834,725 | 35% |
| Average per School ($) | 41,539,667 | 39,235,840 | 34,386,700 | 30,905,091 | 34% |
* Expenses per Equity in Athletics Act (EADA) annual reporting. These results are comparable to NCAA membership reporting with one primary exception – EADA reporting does not include payments made for athletic facilities debt service and leases. See our methodology page for more detail and disclosures.
Estimated NCAA Revenue Sharing 2025-26: Conference USA Schools
Based on average operating revenue of around $ 9 million per school (see table above), estimated revenue sharing using the 22% NCAA benchmark results in an average commitment of about $ 2 million per school:
| Estimated Revenue Sharing Conference USA Schools 2025-26 | Revenue Share % | Team / Sport Allocation ($) | Eligible Athletes | Average per Athlete ($) |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Football | 54.2% | 1,099,241 | 105 | 10,469 | |
| Men's Basketball | 16.3% | 331,538 | 15 | 22,103 | |
| All Other Sports | 29.5% | 598,534 | 259 | 2,311 | |
| Average per School | 100.0% | $ 2,029,313 | 379 |
Football and Men’s basketball account for the bulk of team specific revenues at most FBS Group of 6 schools, and athletes on these two teams will be the major beneficiaries of revenue sharing. These are averages per athlete, a few players per team will likely receive substantially higher, while many will receive much less. Schools may pay more or less than the 22% NCAA benchmark, and can also opt out of revenue sharing entirely. Estimates are based on team specific revenues as reported to the NCAA.
We didn’t just make this stuff up … see our page on methodology and sources of information. Questions on our data? Contact us at: NIL-NCAA.com Statistics compiled & edited by Patrick O’Rourke CPA, Washington, DC 