The next big thing on the college-athletics money front is private equity, which is something the ACC may or may not be looking into.
“I’m not going to go into internal conversations that we’ve had with the board, but I wouldn’t be doing my job if we aren’t exploring every area that’s available,” ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips told reporters at the 2024 ACC Football Kickoff in Charlotte on Monday.
The question on the topic came up because of the offer on the table from a private-equity firm for a stake in the Big 12, which would inject as much as $1 billion into the league in return for the firm, CVC Capital Partners, getting a 15 percent to 20 percent ownership share.
The particulars on how such a deal would ultimately work is the big question. College-athletics programs, and college-athletics conferences, operate as non-profit entities, so, what a private-equity owner would actually own, and be able to profit from, is right now undefined.
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“Nothing’s for free. That’s probably the most important piece of this thing,” Phillips said. “Yes, influx of cash allows you to do some things, but do schools want to do that individually, collectively? Do they not want to do it at all?
“Again, I think it’s just the times that we’re in that you’re looking at lots of different options, trying to make sure you’re vetting them at the right level to make really good, educated decisions,” Phillips said.
But that’s all theoretical when it comes to the ACC.
Phillips wouldn’t even concede that private equity is one of the avenues that the conference office and ACC presidents are considering in terms of potential revenue growth.
“I know that it gets out there. Sometimes folks want it to get out there, et cetera. We’ve done a really nice job of kind of keeping things together in a private way. I would just say we are and we have continued to look at all options as it relates to revenue,” Phillips said.
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Chris Graham
