A bit annoying as a fan, but you want championships, right?
The University of Tennessee athletic department said in an email to season ticket holders Tuesday that the college will be slapping on a 10% “talent fee” to their football tickets beginning in the 2025 campaign. The money from the fee will be put towards Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) to pay student-athletes. (RELATED: ‘Unwritten Rule Not To Do That’: Ole Miss’ Lane Kiffin Rips Wake Forest For Cancelling 2025 Game After Blowout Loss)
The talent fee of 10% is a part of an overall price hike of 14.5% that football tickets will see in 2025. Danny White, the athletic director of Tennessee, stated to season ticket holders in a video that this is pretty much a “business is business” scenario as the revenue sharing era in college sports approaches, and that the money will compensate players.
“We’ve come a long way in the last few years,” White told the Knoxville News Sentinel’s Adam Sparks. “In this new wea, it’s going to get a lot more expensive. But there’s also going to be a closer relationship between resources and competition than there ever has been before. And our biggest asset is our fan base.”
Tennessee will add a 10% “talent fee” on all football tickets, starting next season. This fee will go to the players, helping fund the proposed revenue share w/the players. UT estimates per-seat price increase averaging 4.5% for entire stadium
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) September 17, 2024
Nobody likes to see prices rise, but if it’s going towards winning and championships, is it necessarily a problem?