The NCAA is now investigating a number of differences between men’s and women’s sports, and demand is mounting to compensate referees equally throughout the regular season. The Associated Press was informed that two Division I conferences have plans to equalize compensation, and a third is contemplating it. Even though the impact on their finances would be minimal, some people are opposing change.
Michael Lewis, a professor of marketing at the Business School of Emory University, stated that those who are equalizing compensation are doing so because they see the writing on the wall. The specifics of NCAA referee compensation are tightly guarded, but data for the 2021–22 season acquired by The Associated Press shows that 15 of the NCAA’s biggest and most successful conferences paid seasoned referees for men’s basketball games an additional average of 22% per game. The range of this is greater than the gender wage gap in the US economy.
