FSU, Clemson unhappy with ACC revenue distribution sparks reaction – 247Sports

Sports News / By /

FSU and Clemson leaders are unhappy with the current distribution of the ACC’s revenue in football, and the widening gap relative to other conferences has left the Seminoles and Tigers potentially considering a costly exit. FSU athletic director Michael Alford said during a BOT board meeting Friday that “something has to change” for the Seminoles to remain ACC members, causing a stir.

The ACC is tied to its current TV deal through 2036. The recent lucrative deals for the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 are significantly higher than the ACC’s current contract, and the Pac-12 is next in the pecking order. If nothing changes, some members of the league could be harvested from others, according to FSU and Clemson.

FSU currently represents 70% more viewers than the ACC average, and Clemson isn’t far behind. Figures show that from 2014 to 2022, FSU and Clemson represented 51% of all 4.0 million viewer games in the ACC.

Get the fastest results, stats, news, LIVE videos and more. CLICK HERE to download the CBS Sports Mobile App and get the latest on your team today.

Here are some media reactions to comments from FSU and Clemson decision makers.

According to Noles247, FSU currently earns approximately $38 million less than Big Ten teams and $30 million less than SEC programs after earnings are distributed annually through its rights deal with the ACC.

“We work every day, the President and I talk about our future every day,” Alford said last week. “We’re working with the chairman. We probably have known earnings and probably different options than any other sports department in the country. We’re going to 2042 with the projected earnings. We’ve hired a consultant to come in and really work with us on this and look at every option we have going forward. But we have to do something because we are a brand and we are a very important brand and we are promoting the media value of this conference.

“We talk to the conference all the time, the President and I sit in meetings making sure they understand our value to this conference, but at the end of the day we can’t be $30 million if something isn’t done by comparison lagging behind our competitors every year.”

One of the FSU BOT members addressed the elephant in the room as Alford, who allowed the attorney to answer the question. What are the ultimate ramifications if the Seminoles decide to, say, drop out of the ACC tomorrow?

“The bylaws regulate the exit from the conference and the cost of exiting the conference, and it is written there that it is three times the operating budget of the ACC’s annual operating budget, the ACC’s bylaws say,” one reportedly said by Alford’s attorneys.

This graphic would frustrate any ACC athletic director whose football program is a money-making machine for the league, like FSU and Clemson. These are the league’s two heavyweights, along with Miami, and they’re not afraid to say it publicly.

It would be quite expensive for FSU to leave the ACC and join another conference. And for now, at least, that seems to be keeping the Seminoles from jumping.

The ACC is tied to an exclusive media rights deal with ESPN that runs through 2036 and pays members approximately $31.6 million a year. The ACC’s media rights contract has the latest expiry date of any current contract for a Power Five conference and expires after several contracts that have not even come into effect for other conferences.

Graham Neff, Clemson’s sporting director, was a little more forthright in his assessment of revenue distribution within the ACC and the need for change.

“In all frankness, I called it a necessity,” Neff said in a recent interview with The Post and Courier. “We certainly recognize the investment we have continued to make as an institution in our community in athletics, particularly football, which certainly drives a great value that is important from a television and revenue generation standpoint. Is it time to change the revenue distribution within conferences or at least the ACC? Yes, I have been very active in these conversations within the league and continue to expect to take a leadership role in our desire for circumstances to change. Urgent.”

This is something to consider if the FSU and Clemson managed to get out of the ACC by footing the exit fee bill. With other Power Five leagues poised for the next era with recent deals with ESPN and FOX, those networks would need to bring more money to the table to add the Seminoles and Tigers.

The hypotheses are rife and mention of another super league has begun. If FSU and Clemson want out of the ACC and are willing to pay the fee, both football programs would be extremely attractive elsewhere, or perhaps for a new league that has yet to be formed.

Dean Straka contributed to this report.