FY2024–25 Conference Snapshot
Source: IRS Form 990, tax year 07/01/2024–06/30/2025 · Prepared by Data Driven HBCU · April 2026
Total Conference Revenue
$63.6M
All 5 conferences combined
Total Distributed to Schools
$25.2M
Member distributions, all conferences
Conferences Running Deficits
2 of 5
CAA (−$731K) · OVC (−$4.3M)
Highest Avg Distribution
~$1.12M
SWAC · per school · 12 members
Lowest Avg Distribution
~$45K
CAA Football · media rights only
All Conferences at a Glance
Southwestern Athletic Conference
12 HBCU members · EIN 64-0679979
Total Distributions
$13.4M
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
8 HBCU members · EIN 56-0992403
Coastal Athletic Association
13 members (Hampton, NC A&T as HBCU members) · EIN 54-1670009
Multimedia Contracts
$2.5M
Not distributed to schools
CAA Football
~12 football members (Hampton & NC A&T as HBCU members) · EIN 42-1719463
FloSports Rights Fees
$645K
Ohio Valley Conference
11 members (Tennessee State as HBCU member) · EIN 62-0693124
TV Contract Fees
$873K
Retained — not distributed
Revenue Sources by Conference
How each conference generates revenue · Source: IRS Form 990, FY2024–25
Total Revenue Comparison
Conference total revenue, FY2024–25
Revenue Breakdown by Source
Stacked by revenue category — TV/Media, NCAA Grants/Passthrough, Tournaments, Dues & Sponsorships, Other
| Conference |
TV / Media |
NCAA Grants |
Tournament |
Dues |
Sponsorships |
Other |
Total Revenue |
| SWACSouthwestern Athletic Conference |
$7,320,445 |
$9,203,306 |
$84,318 |
$420,000 |
$4,375,024 |
$150,372 |
$25,553,465 |
| MEACMid-Eastern Athletic Conference |
$2,136,485 |
— |
$1,042,052 |
$427,000 |
$1,964,079 |
$8,578,297 |
$14,147,913 |
| CAACoastal Athletic Association |
$2,474,992 |
$3,535,193 |
$2,359,649 |
$790,000 |
— |
$919,498 |
$10,079,332 |
| CAA FBCAA Football |
$645,008 |
$302,777 |
— |
$540,000 |
— |
$552,496 |
$2,040,281 |
| OVCOhio Valley Conference |
$872,656 |
$2,849,405 |
$301,271 |
$467,000 |
$76,491 |
$7,246,526 |
$11,813,349 |
Note on TV / Media: The SWAC's $7.3M TV/media revenue is by far the largest in this group and is distributed to member schools as part of the overall pool. The CAA's $2.5M multimedia contract revenue is retained by the conference for operations — member schools receive no share of it. CAA Football distributes its FloSports fees directly. The OVC retains its $873K TV contract fees for conference operations.
Member School Distributions
What each conference distributes to member schools · Source: IRS Form 990, FY2024–25
Total Distributions to Member Schools
Aggregate distributions reported on each conference's Form 990
Average Distribution Per Member School
Total distributions divided by number of member schools
| Conference |
Members |
Total Distributed |
Avg / School |
TV Revenue Distributed? |
HBCU Members |
| SWACSouthwestern Athletic Conference |
12 |
$13,409,016 |
~$1,117,418 |
Yes — part of pool |
All 12 |
| MEACMid-Eastern Athletic Conference |
8 |
$3,988,007 |
~$498,501 |
Varies by policy |
All 8 |
| CAACoastal Athletic Association |
13 |
$5,586,118 |
~$429,701 |
No — retained |
Hampton, NC A&T |
| CAA FBCAA Football |
~12 |
$539,969 |
~$44,997 |
Yes — FloSports fees |
Hampton, NC A&T |
| OVCOhio Valley Conference |
11 |
$1,688,876 |
~$153,534 |
No — retained |
Tennessee State |
OVC Note: The OVC also distributed $8,798,615 in NCAA passthrough grants directly to individual student-athletes (Special Assistance Fund, Academic Enhancement, Grants in Aid, Sports Sponsorship). This is separate from the $1,688,876 distributed to institutions. Tennessee State University received $196,468 in the institutional distribution.
MFRS Correlation: Conference distributions appear in each school's NCAA Membership Financial Reporting System (MFRS) filing under a single combined line labeled "NCAA / Conference." This field cannot be separated into conference distributions vs. direct NCAA distributions at the school level — meaning the amounts schools report in MFRS will generally exceed what their conference distributed, due to direct NCAA flows that bypass the conference entirely.
Distribution Policy by Conference
How each conference determines what each school receives · Source: IRS Form 990 & Schedule I analysis, FY2024–25
SWAC · 12 Members
Pooled Distribution — TV, NCAA Shares, Championship Game & Grants
The SWAC distributes its entire revenue pool to member schools, including TV/media rights revenue, NCAA Tournament shares (distributed evenly across all members regardless of which school earned the bid), Football Championship Game revenue, and NCAA grant funds. The grant component — which includes per-athlete formulas for Special Assistance, Academic Enhancement, and similar funds — introduces variation between schools based on program size and sports sponsorship. The Football Championship Game adds a performance-based layer for participating schools. As a result, distributions are not perfectly equal: schools with larger programs and more sponsored sports receive proportionally more from the grants component, while TV and NCAA Tournament revenue is split evenly.
MEAC · 8 Members
Earning School Retains Majority of NCAA Tournament Share
The MEAC uses a distribution policy that allows the school that earned an NCAA Tournament bid to retain the majority of that revenue share over the rolling six-year distribution period. This creates meaningful variation between MEAC members: schools with recent tournament appearances (Norfolk State, SC State) report significantly higher "NCAA / Conference" figures in their MFRS filings than schools without recent bids (NC Central, UMES). The base MEAC distribution average of ~$498K per school reflects programs without recent tournament revenue. Schools with accumulated tournament shares can see confDistrib figures 2–3x above that baseline.
CAA (Multi-Sport) · 13 Members
NCAA Pass-Through Only — Multimedia Revenue Retained by Conference
The CAA distributes NCAA pass-through funds to member schools but retains its multimedia contract revenue entirely for conference operations. The $2,474,992 in multimedia contracts the CAA generated in FY2024–25 did not flow to member schools — none of it appears in school-level MFRS filings as conference revenue. Member schools including Hampton and NC A&T receive only the NCAA distribution component (~$429,701 average), not a share of the broadcast deal. The CAA also ran a −$731,219 deficit in FY2024–25, partly funded by retaining multimedia revenue while distributing NCAA funds.
CAA Football · ~12 Football Members
FloSports Media Rights Fees Distributed to Football Members
Unlike the main CAA (multi-sport), CAA Football does distribute its media rights revenue. Of $645,008 received in FloSports Rights Fees, $539,969 was distributed to football member schools as "Media Rights Distribution" — a pass-through rate of approximately 84%. Hampton University and NC A&T, as the HBCU football members, each receive a share of this distribution. Football-only members (Rhode Island, Bryant, Albany, Maine, New Hampshire) receive this distribution but do not participate in the main CAA's basketball and multi-sport distributions.
OVC · 11 Members
TV Revenue Retained · Per-School Athletic Competition Grants Distributed
The OVC retains its $872,656 in television contract fees for conference operations and does not distribute TV revenue to member schools. Institutional distributions ($1,688,876 total) are structured as per-school "Athletic Competition" grants with amounts that vary based on sports sponsorship level. Schools sponsoring more sports receive proportionally larger grants. Tennessee State University received $196,468 — the standard mid-tier amount. Additionally, the OVC distributes $8,798,615 in NCAA funds directly to student-athletes (not institutions) across four fund categories. The OVC ran a −$4,305,161 deficit in FY2024–25 and is in a leadership transition with an acting commissioner.
Conference Financial Health
Net financial position, expense structure, and leadership compensation · Source: IRS Form 990, FY2024–25
Net Financial Position (Surplus / Deficit)
Revenue minus expenses for each conference, FY2024–25
Total Revenue vs. Total Expenses
Side-by-side comparison across all five conferences
Commissioner / Top Leadership Compensation
Total reported compensation, FY2024–25
| Conference |
Commissioner / Leadership |
Compensation |
Total Revenue |
Total Expenses |
Net Position |
| SWAC |
Dr. Charles McClelland |
$400,000 |
$25,553,465 |
$21,115,946 |
+$4,437,519 |
| MEAC |
Sonja Stills |
$305,000 |
$14,147,913 |
$11,920,363 |
+$2,227,550 |
| CAA |
Joseph D'Antonio |
$337,255 |
$10,079,332 |
$10,810,551 |
−$731,219 |
| CAA FB |
Joseph D'Antonio (shared) |
— |
$2,040,281 |
$1,480,214 |
+$560,067 |
| OVC |
Beth DeBauche (Acting) |
$316,010 |
$11,813,349 |
$16,118,510 |
−$4,305,161 |
CAA Football / Commissioner Note: Joseph D'Antonio serves as Commissioner of both the CAA (multi-sport) and CAA Football. His full compensation is paid by the main CAA. CAA Football reimburses the CAA for his time — this reimbursement is reported in CAA Football's Schedule O and reflected in Column F of Part VII on that return.
OVC Deficit Context: The OVC's −$4.3M deficit in FY2024–25 is driven largely by distributing grant funds that exceed television and membership revenue in this period, combined with a leadership transition. The conference is operating under acting leadership with Gregory Walter as Acting Commissioner.
Key Findings
Data Driven HBCU analysis · IRS Form 990, FY2024–25
Finding 1
SWAC distributes 7x more per school than the OVC — the gap between conferences is structural, not incidental
The average SWAC distribution (~$1.12M per school) is more than seven times the average OVC institutional grant (~$153K per school). This reflects fundamentally different conference economic models: the SWAC pools its large TV deal and distributes it, while the OVC retains its TV fees for operations. For HBCU members, conference choice has a direct and measurable impact on the revenue available to fund athletic programs.
Finding 2
Conference media deal size and what schools receive are two different numbers
The CAA generated $2.47M in multimedia contract revenue in FY2024–25 and distributed none of it to member schools. The OVC generated $873K in TV contract fees and retained them for operations. By contrast, CAA Football distributed 84% of its FloSports fees to football members. Having a media deal does not guarantee that schools benefit from it — distribution policy determines whether that revenue reaches the campus level.
Finding 3
The MEAC's tournament-earner policy creates measurable, time-limited advantages for winning schools
MEAC schools that earned NCAA Tournament bids retain the majority of their share over the rolling six-year distribution period. This policy is directly visible in MFRS data: Norfolk State reported $1,789,129 in NCAA/Conference revenue in FY2025, while NC Central — without recent tournament appearances — reported $356,973. The difference reflects accumulated tournament shares, not a structural conference funding disparity. These advantages phase out over six years if tournament appearances don't continue.
Finding 4
The MFRS "NCAA / Conference" line is a black box that combines two separate revenue flows
Every HBCU athletic department reports a single "NCAA / Conference" line in its MFRS filing. This combines what the conference distributes with direct NCAA funds that flow to schools without passing through the conference at all. The 990 data is the only publicly available source that allows researchers to estimate how much of a school's confDistrib comes from each source. For CAA schools, nearly all of it is direct NCAA money. For SWAC schools, a significant portion reflects the conference's own revenue distribution.
Finding 5
SWAC schools receive more from their conference — and spend more than they take in
Despite the SWAC distributing ~$1.12M per school on average — the highest in this group — SWAC schools in the FY2025 MFRS cohort show some of the largest deficits. Grambling State (−$4.97M), Prairie View A&M (−$8.15M), and Southern University (−$1.35M) are all running significant operating deficits. The conference distributions are being absorbed by expanding expenditures, not creating financial stability. Higher conference revenue does not automatically translate to healthier athletic department finances.
Finding 6
The OVC's −$4.3M deficit signals a conference under financial and structural stress
The OVC spent $4.3M more than it generated in FY2024–25, is operating under acting leadership, and retains rather than distributes its TV revenue. For Tennessee State — the conference's only HBCU member — this matters: TSU received $196,468 from the OVC in institutional distributions, a fraction of what SWAC or MEAC peers receive. If the OVC's financial position deteriorates further, the distributions available to TSU are at risk.
Research Verdict
Conference affiliation is one of the most consequential financial decisions an HBCU athletic program makes — yet the economics of that decision are rarely visible at the school level. The Form 990 data reveals a wide range of conference models: from the SWAC's full revenue-sharing pool to the CAA's retention of multimedia revenue, from the MEAC's performance-based tournament policy to the OVC's struggling balance sheet. For HBCU programs already operating on tight margins, the difference between conferences is not just competitive — it is financial.