Field Advertisements at Beaver Stadium? NCAA Rule Change Now Allows for It

Beaver Stadium could see on-field advertisements as soon as this year following a rule change by the NCAA made earlier this week.

“On a recommendation from the Football Rules Committee, the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel on Thursday approved allowing commercial sponsor advertisements on football fields for regular-season games in all three divisions, starting with the 2024 season,” an NCAA press release reads. “Under the new rule, 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. This could be done on a game-by-game basis or for the whole season.”

“This change allows schools to generate additional income to support student-athletes,” NCAA President Charlie Baker added. “I’m pleased that we could find flexibility within our rules to make this happen for member schools.”

The rule change almost certainly comes in no small part as the result of a recently concluded court settlement that will see NCAA members take part in revenue sharing with student athletes, likely starting in late 2025. The settlement could put athletic departments on the hook for upwards of $22 million annually according to some reports. While details of the revenue sharing program are still being ironed out, the overarching sentiment is the same: athletic departments will need more money flowing in to cover all of the money flowing out.

As for how much money on field advertisements could bring in, that number shouldn’t be a small one, even with a fairly short home schedule compared to other sports. For a comparison, according to Van Wagner, a sports advertising and branding agency, in 2021, T-Mobile paid $2.65 million for a season-long ad placement behind home plate during games broadcast on Fox and Fox Sports 1 – a significant increase from the $1.5 million paid for the same placement in 2018.

While that number will almost certainly be smaller by virtue of a shorter home schedule, seven home games valued at [a completely arbitrary] $100,000 each in ad space would represent $700,000 in additional revenues, nearly a 5% bump in advertising revenue. Penn State athletics listed advertising, royalties, licensing and sponsorship revenues of $14.6 million in its most recent financial report. Whatever the actual number ends up being, don’t expect Penn State to share it, and also don’t expect it to go for cheap. A brand name slapped in the middle of a White Out on NBC isn’t cheap.