College and University Blog
Big Business: Alcohol Advertising and College Sports
College athletics is BIG business. Athletic programs across the country are feeling increased pressure to raise more and more funds. What price are institutions of higher learning willing to pay for those sports dollars?
Alcohol advertising is pervasive in college sporting events. According to a recent report in USA Today, “NCAA tournament games led all other sports events in alcohol-related TV advertising in 2002, with 939 ads costing $28 million. That compares with a combined 925 ads aired during the Super Bowl, World Series, college bowl games and the NFL’s Monday Night Football.”
The alcohol industry sees nothing wrong with advertising during college sporting events. They deny that the ads promote underage alcohol use. They claim that the vast majority of people watching and attending college sports, as well as the majority of students in college, are of legal drinking age. Research by Nielsen Media shows that almost 90% of all college football and basketball viewers are of legal drinking age. Additional research shows that 89 % of viewers of last year’s NCAA tournament were adults, with a median age of 48. Advertising during college sporting events is seen as smart marketing