A ton of money was essentially thrown into an incinerator Thursday when March Madness was canceled.
According to Jay Bilas, there was at least $1 billion at stake when the NCAA decided to pull the plug on the biggest basketball event of the year because of coronavirus. (RELATED: David Hookstead Is The True King In The North When It Comes To College Football)
You can watch his full comments below.
“I’m not sure there was any other reasonable choice.”@JayBilas reacts to the news of the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments getting canceled today in response to coronavirus concerns. pic.twitter.com/26USDdOelw
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) March 12, 2020
Now, it’s important to point out that the NCAA also reportedly has insurance and a rainy day fund for this exact purpose.
FWIW, #NCAA has a significant “rainy day” fund AND insurance to cover the cost of having a total March Madness tournament cancellation. One that takes into account total lost revenue and not just lost ticket revenue. Food for thought as it presses forward in spite of Coronavirus. https://t.co/Xi3pspvkti
— Charles Robinson (@CharlesRobinson) March 10, 2020
On top of that, The Hollywood Reporter pointed out the fact CBS made more than $650 million season broadcasting the games. The city of Atlanta was also expected to see more than $100 million come through for the Final Four.
Now, that’s money that won’t be made.
Just in case you didn’t think March Madness being canned wasn’t a huge deal, these numbers should immediately change your mind.
We’re talking about well north of $1 billion once it’s all said and done, and we’re not even including the conference tournaments.
Now, none of that money get made thanks to the coronavirus.
I have to laugh because the only other option is to cry. What a sad and pathetic time for the world of sports. If I could bomb coronavirus out of existence, I absolutely would.
I’d airstrike the hell out of it for stealing March Madness and our joy.
Hopefully, we’ll be back to normal in 2021, and the money will be back to flowing.