NCAA panel sets up schools having sponsor logos on football fields for regular home games

The NCAA on Thursday opened the door to colleges being able to put a corporate logo on their football fields for regular season home games.

The move by the Playing Rules Oversight Panel comes two weeks after the NCAA and the Power Five approved the proposed settlement of three athlete-compensation antitrust lawsuits that would include $2.8 billion in damages and billions more in future revenue-sharing payments to athletes, including shares of money from sponsorship revenue.

The panel’s vote is subject to review by the association’s top-level governing boards, but with Division I schools seeking new revenue sources because of the proposed settlement, it seems unlikely that Thursday’s vote will be overridden. The panel's charge includes reviewing “playing-rules proposals, especially those involving player safety, financial impact or image of the game,” according to the NCAA’s website.

"This change allows schools to generate additional income to support student-athletes," NCAA President Charlie Baker said in a statement. "I'm pleased that we could find flexibility within our rules to make this happen for member schools."

On-field logo deals could be worth at least $3.8 million to $4.2 million a year for top-level schools in the Power Four conferences, according to estimates provided to USA TODAY Sports by Navigate, a firm that specializes in college and professional sports rights valuations.

Navigate said its calculations are based on 2023 values for viewership and attendance, schools playing six home games and includes the total values of in-venue and TV broadcast exposure for a sponsor. Many of the top-level schools in the Power Four conferences annually play seven home games.

Navigate estimated that these types of arrangements could be worth at least $300,000 to $700,000 annually for other Power Four schools and at least $50,000 to $90,000 annually for Group of Five schools.

However, Navigate President Jeff Nelson said schools' ability have sponsor logos on their football fields could lead to broader deals that could generate greater revenue.

"This could add more value to stadium naming rights," Nelson said in an interview before Thursday's vote. He also said field-logo deals could be a "tent pole" vehicle that schools use to build package deals that also involve hospitality, social or digital assets.

"It's much harder to sell those (rights) if you don't have that visible asset," Nelson said. "And it's not just the visibility, it's the excitement it generates for executives and people who truly matter at a brand. … We know from brand clients that there are a lot of CEO's who like to turn on the TV and see their (company) logo behind home plate or on the courtside rotation. … And, remember, football — far and away — has the most value. It's easier to sell a seven-figure deal when (the logo) is prominently displayed on the SEC game of the week or Ohio State-Michigan."

Under the proposed settlement, it is likely that schools choosing to have revenue-sharing programs with their athletes will have to put a portion of any field-logo money into their pay pools. Payments to athletes, presumably set to being in 2025-26 academic year, initially will guided by a cap of 22% of the combined total of certain revenues of Power Four conference schools. Among the revenues being counted for this are those from media rights deals, ticket sales and sponsorships.

NCAA representatives said in the wake of the proposed settlement’s approval that the dollar amount for the cap is set to increase annually and would be re-set further, depending on whether the applicable revenues increase substantially.

Until now, the NCAA Division I Manual and the NCAA Football Rules have had tight restrictions on the use of commercial logos. 

Under the previous football rules, advertising on the field had been prohibited except for “postseason and neutral-site games the title sponsor whose name is associated with the name of that game … with the restriction that there be a maximum of three such advertisements: a single advertisement centered on the 50-yard line and no more than two smaller flanking advertisements.”

The football rules also have said: “If a commercial entity or individual has purchased naming rights to the stadium, facility, or field, that entity’s or individual’s name/ company-specific font or logo may be painted on the field in no more than two” maximum allowable total of four "flanking locations” to the midfield area.

Under the new rules, the NCAA said: "The corporate advertisements can be placed in three spots on the field: A single advertisement centered on the 50-yard line is allowed in addition to no more than two smaller flanking advertisements elsewhere on the field."