How Much Do Oregon Ducks Earn In Big Ten’s $7 Billion Media Rights Deal?

EUGENE – It is no secret that there is big money involved in college football. Whether it’s NIL, TV rights, or sponsorships, college football is easily the most revenue-generating collegiate sport in the world. Conference realignment only heightened the financial stakes. Schools are now not only looking to compete at the highest level but also secure long-term financial stability. 

Last season, the Big Ten Conference expanded to 18 teams, adding the Oregon Ducks, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, and Washington Huskies. These four former Pac-12 programs didn’t just bring pedigree and publicity with them, but serious money as well. 

The Big Ten reported “just over $928 million in total revenue” on its federal tax records, according to USA Today’s Steve Berkowitz. 

To put that number into perspective, the SEC reported $840 million in total revenue for 2024, meaning the Big Ten generated $88 million more than the SEC. And that number is only expected to grow. 

According to Berkowitz, the Big Ten’s revenue in the 2025 fiscal year is expected to rise somewhere between $1.2 billion and $1.4 billion. That jump would make it the wealthiest conference in college athletics history. 

However, not every school will immediately see the full benefit. In 2024, the Big Ten distributed $63.2 million to each of its 12 longest-standing member schools. That notably excluded the four Pac-12 additions of Oregon, Washington, USC, and UCLA as well as Maryland and Rutgers, who joined the conference back in 2014. 

Looking ahead to 2025, Berkowitz reports that 16 of the 18 Big Ten schools are projected to receive around $75 million each. Oregon and Washington will be the two exceptions. As the newest members, their shares will be phased in over a seven-year period, giving both schools a slower ramp-up to full payouts. 

The Oregon athletic department is “averaging over $50 million just from direct media rights” over a 10-year period as the Ducks transition to a receiving a full share of Big Ten revenue, according to University President Karl Scholz.

All these big numbers tie into the Big Ten’s massive seven-year, $7 billion media rights deal with Fox, CBS, and NBC. That agreement began on July 1, 2023, and will run through the end of the 2029–30 athletic year. 

According to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg, the financial windfall wasn’t expected to hit right away. CBS was still airing SEC games in 2023 and only showed seven Big Ten matchups, limiting early returns. 

However, in 2024, with USC and UCLA officially in the conference and the Big Ten now featured prominently on CBS, the payout started to rise, and it’s just the beginning. At the time of the article, the expectation was for the Big Ten to eventually distribute between $80 million and $100 million per year to each school. 

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For Oregon, the move to the Big Ten isn’t just about tougher competition on the field. It’s a long-term financial investment in the future of the program. While the Ducks won’t receive the full media rights payout right away, being part of the Big Ten gives Oregon a clearer path to maintain and even enhance its national competitiveness. 

Whether that’s upgrading facilities, expanding recruiting resources, or enriching the overall fan experience in Eugene, the money Oregon is bringing in with the help of the Big Ten Conference will make the Ducks more competitive across the board.