II.

Organization

The NCAA has more than 1,250 member schools, conferences, and affiliated organizations. In 2004 it administered 23 sports and conducted more than 80 championship events. In 1997 the organization shifted administrative control at the school level from athletic directors to college presidents. The NCAA executive committee oversees association-wide issues, with the assistance of numerous subcommittees as well as regional and local offices and officials.

Member schools select to compete in one of three competitive NCAA divisions, which are differentiated by factors such as the number of sports offered and their recruitment and financial aid policies. Division I and II schools must obey certain minimums and maximums regarding the number of athletic scholarships offered, while Division III schools are not permitted to give any athletic scholarship money (need-based aid may still be awarded). NCAA Division I programs are further subdivided into two classifications: I-A schools have large football programs with specific spectator attendance requirements, while I-AA schools have smaller football programs with no attendance minimums.

More than 75 percent of the NCAA’s annual revenue comes from television rights to its competitions. The bulk of this money comes from the annual Division I men’s basketball championship tournament. In 2003 the CBS television network began an 11-year, $6-billion contract for the broadcast rights to the three-week-long tournament, one of the most popular sporting events in the country. Division I-A college football also generates large amounts of broadcast revenue, but because the sport lacks an NCAA-sanctioned postseason tournament the bulk of the money goes directly to the conferences and schools rather than to the NCAA.