FOIA: Cursory look at Michigan MAC FY2025 football finances
The trio of Michigan MAC schools each spent $11-12 million on their respective football programs in Fiscal Year 2025.
Central Michigan and Western Michigan football programs in Fiscal Year 2025 ran deficits of approximately $8.5 million and $5.5 million, respectively, according to annual financial reports submitted to the NCAA and obtained by Mitten Football via Freedom of Information Act requests.
Eastern Michigan’s football program broke even, spending exactly as much as it brought in via revenues, though the Eagles’ primary source of revenue for football in FY2025 (July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025) came in the form of $8,059,236 in direct institutional support — i.e. money from the university to spend on athletics.
NCAA Division 1 institutions are required to submit annual athletics financial reports to the NCAA by Jan. 15, about six months after the conclusion of the fiscal year.
Of the three Michigan MAC schools, only Eastern Michigan opted to allow the NCAA to share its reported revenue data to the College Sports Commission, a newly-formed regulatory body aimed at enforcing the parameters of the House Settlement to allow revenue sharing and NIL. The NCAA financial reporting now includes a line item for institutional revenue share, but it wasn’t allowed until July 1, 2026, the first day of FY2026, so none of the three schools reported any revenue sharing in the FY2025 reports.
All three schools allowed the data to be shared with the Mid-American Conference.
Central Michigan’s athletic department on the whole reported $37,911,632 in revenues in FY2025 while amassing $38,536,348 in expenses. That put the Chippewas at -$624,716 for FY2025.
Eastern Michigan reported $38,924,559 in revenues against $38,924,559 of expenses, coming out exactly even. The EMU athletic department on the whole got $26,807,094 in direct support from the university that covered the difference from other revenues.
Western Michigan pulled in $41,934,267 in revenues while spending $44,910,138 and posted a final margin of -$2,975,871.
As for football, specifically, Central Michigan’s reporting for Fiscal Year 2025 shows $3,072,955 in total revenues for the football program in comparison to $11,608,429 in expenses. That’s a difference of -$8,535,474..
Western Michigan reported revenues of $6,218,580 for football in FY2025, while spending $11,795,493, a difference of -$5,576,913.
Central Michigan and Western Michigan, unlike Eastern Michigan, did not get large sums via direct institutional support. CMU football got $23,199 and WMU football got $104,016 from their respective institutions.
Eastern Michigan reported $11,077,016 in revenues, exactly equal to the $11,077,016 in expenses. The Eagles’ football revenues without direct institutional support were $3,017,780.
Top line Michigan MAC FY2025 football figures
Central Michigan
- Revenues (total): $3,072,955
- Revenues (minus direct institutional support): $3,049,756
- Expenses: $11,608,429
- Surplus/deficit (total revenues minus expenses): -$8,535,474
Eastern Michigan
- Revenues (total): $11,077,016
- Revenues (minus direct institutional support): $3,017,780
- Expenses: $11,077,016
- Surplus/deficit (total revenues minus expenses): $0
Western Michigan
- Revenues (total): $6,218,580
- Revenues (minus direct institutional support): $6,114,564
- Expenses: $11,795,493
- Surplus/deficit (total revenues minus expenses): -$5,576,913
All three football programs spent between $11-12 million in FY2025, and the main driver of those costs are scholarships for athletes and coaching salaries and benefits.
Other big expense items include non-travel meals, team travel, administrative overhead, recruiting, equipment and facilities.
All three Michigan MAC schools spent notably on guarantee games for football, but made more from their own payouts for various guarantee games against Power 4 non-conference opponents.
Central Michigan paid out $375,000 for a guarantee game while making $1.5 million on guarantee games.
Eastern Michigan paid $475,000 for a guarantee game and made $1.9 million on playing in others.
And Western Michigan spent $825,000 for a guarantee game while making a whopping $3.6 million. Western Michigan played at Wisconsin and then Ohio State to open the 2024 season.
The Broncos also got $354,300 in postseason football expenses reimbursed, covering some of the $580,706 in postseason football expenses WMU incurred with a bowl berth in 2024.
