In preparing for a new era in college sports next fall, the University of Tennessee will add a “talent fee” onto football ticket prices, with proceeds going into a pool to be shared by athletes.
In an email sent to football season-ticket holders on Tuesday, the university announced single-ticket and season-ticket prices will rise 14.5% in 2025. In a video posted by the athletic department, Vols athletic director Danny White said a minimum 10% of that will account for a “talent fee” as the school looks to “be a leader in revenue sharing.”
White told Knox News it will help fund the revenue-sharing pool committed to athletes as part of the proposed House, Carter and Hubbard antitrust lawsuit settlements with the NCAA. (The remaining 4.5% will reflect athletic department expenses, food, travel and the renovation of Neyland Stadium.)
Crediting a member of his creative team in an interview with On3, White said the school should call the additional cost what it truly is. “It’s a talent fee, and it’s going directly to the talent,” he said. “It’s going to our student-athletes as part of this new world order in college sports. So I know our fans will embrace it.”
Season ticket renewals for 2025 begin next week. Tennessee already doubled the prices of student tickets this season from $10 to $20, and those will go up an additional $5 next season.
An athletic department spokesperson released the following statement on the school’s support of the plan: “We at the University of Tennessee believe in sharing resources with our student-athletes and will continue to pursue ways to do so through our regulatory environment (NCAA, SEC, State of Tennessee).”
However, it’s no sure thing the proposed antitrust settlement that’s the basis for the fee will be resolved by next season. The settlement failed to gain preliminary approval after a contentious hearing in California on Sept. 9 when U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken expressed significant concerns about core aspects. Neither side of those cases is sure they can come to common ground that will satisfy their clients and the judge.
For now, the multibillion-dollar settlement proposal calls for schools to pay their athletes around $22 million per year starting with the 2025-25 academic year. Schools may opt to fund the pool up to 22% of their yearly revenue.
Roster sizes would be uncapped next year, which will increase the number of athletic scholarships. White believes Tennessee’s revenue-sharing pool will be closer to $30 million but hopes the school can recoup $10 million through the new surcharge.
White also said Tennessee couldn’t wait for the settlements to be approved in the courts to act in the best interest of the athletes, and administering the fee shortly before next season wouldn’t work for the fans. “We have to be prepared,” White said in the On3 interview. “There are financial realities. In any scenario, it’s going to become more expensive to compete at the level we want to compete at.”
Tennessee generated $202,097,305 in overall revenue against $191,032,519 in overall expenses in 2022-23, the last publicly reported academic year. It recently signed a naming rights deal with Pilot that will help fund renovations on Neyland Stadium and other venues around campus. According to Knox News, the Tennessee Fund, which raises money for the school’s teams, pulled in nearly $140 million in 2023-24.
