[ebarker]

FIRST finances are open and well understood. They lose a boatload of money each year and without additional top level sponsorship they would not exist.

The fees, for example the $ 6,000 FRC fee doesn't even come close to paying the expense for a FRC team to compete, after you add in parts costs, facility costs, etc.

THe amount of money that they may have on deposit at any given moment is of no great significance. What is important is how the cash flow is going, income and expense, and what the balance sheet is doing. If they had 8M in deposits on some particular day, they probably had 8M in bills to pay on that date or very soon.

The 8M number you probably heard was the amount of scholarships given each year. It is NOT 8M on deposit. It is 8M of someone elses money, usually university or foundation money in dribs and drabs that add up to 8M. But it is definitely NOT FIRST's money.

But they are definitely not making money. A year or two ago I think the numbers for a typical team to get the KOP and complete a regional had expenses that were over twice the fee you paid for FRC registration. It was sponsor material and cash donations that made up the difference.

If you are interested about starting a new team, there are lot of resources that are available to help new teams learn how to become self-sustaining. Contacts on this website can help lead to advice and strategies, there are mentors and members that have knowledge that can be tapped, and other resources too.