For The Love of Football

Why We Love Football: The Business, the Players, and the Fans

Football in America isn’t just a game. It’s a ritual, a business, a cultural glue. It’s Saturday rivalries and Sunday spectacles. It’s marching bands and halftime shows, tailgates and TV rights, hometown heroes and billion-dollar brands. And whether you’re screaming in a college stadium or watching the NFL in 4K on your couch, money is moving in the background. That money shapes what we see, what we feel, and what players can earn.

Saturdays: The College Machine

College football sells itself as tradition: rivalries, fight songs, and students rushing the field. But make no mistake—there’s big money behind the pageantry.

• The Big Ten pulled in $880 million in FY 2023, about $60 million per school.
• The SEC brought in $853 million, or about $51 million per school.
• The ACC hit $707 million, around $43–47 million per school.
• On top of that, each Power 5 conference earned about $79.4 million from the College Football Playoff.

And then there’s NIL (Name, Image, Likeness). The NIL market is already a $1.67 billion industry, with football players accounting for more than half ($905 million). Starting in 2025, schools can even share up to $20.5 million annually directly with athletes.

Why this matters for players: only 1.6% of college football athletes ever make it to the NFL. NIL lets the other 98% make money while they’re in the spotlight. A quarterback too small for the pros can still land a deal with a local car dealership. A kicker with a TikTok following can monetize his brand. For the first time, college football isn’t just enriching schools and conferences—it’s giving athletes a chance to walk away with something real.

For fans, it changes the vibe. That star wide receiver isn’t just playing for your school pride—he’s also building his own brand. It feels new, messy, and maybe a little commercialized, but it also feels fair.

Sundays: The NFL’s Polished Spectacle

The NFL is football’s corporate giant. Sponsorship is its lifeblood, and the numbers make college deals look small.

• NFL sponsorship revenue hit $2.35 billion in 2023.
• Media + sponsorships generate about $13.8 billion annually, averaging $432 million per team.
• The Cowboys sit at the top of team valuations: $10.1 billion. Other powerhouses like the Rams, Patriots, and Giants hover between $7–8 billion.

Sundays are a polished product. From Verizon halftime sponsorships to Pepsi ads to the billion-dollar streaming rights with YouTube TV, every inch is monetized. Fans get high-definition broadcasts, cinematic camera angles, and halftime shows that rival the Grammys.

But what you don’t get is that small-town connection. NFL football is built for everyone, everywhere. It’s designed to be America’s biggest shared entertainment product.

What It Means for Fans

The business models shape how we experience the sport:

• College football still feels local, rooted in tradition and community, even as NIL money swirls in. It’s messy, emotional, and personal.
• The NFL feels global and refined—optimized for mass appeal and designed as a media juggernaut.

Together, they give us the best of both worlds: Thursday through Monday we get grit and showmanship.

Why We Keep Watching

The money is massive, but it doesn’t kill the magic. If anything, it proves how much football matters. We love it because it carries our communities, our families, our brands, our traditions. We love it because it gives college athletes a shot to get paid while they can, and pro athletes a stage to become household names.

At the end of the day, football is both business and belonging. And that’s why we’re still glued to it—week after week, season after season.

Here's to the 2025 season! Lets go Gamecocks, Bulldogs, and Steelers!