Selig Remains Among Top Paid Sports Execs With 4% Pay Increase

Selig's Salary Increases 4% To $15.06M

MLB Commissioner Bud Selig in the FY ending October 31, 2006, remained "one of the most highly paid executives in the sports industry," earning $15.06M, according to league tax filings cited by Fisher & Kaplan of SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. Selig's pay marks a 4% increase from $14.5M in the year-ago period. In total, MLB paid out $85.1M in "employee compensation and benefits to the 236-employee office during the fiscal year, up from $77[M] the prior year for 231 employees." MLB paid out 69% of revenue in employee compensation, up from 65% a year earlier, which "far exceeds other major sports leagues." The NFL pays out 27% of  "core league office expenses," while the NHL pays 47%, according to the leagues' respective tax returns. Selig's pay total includes $14.515M in base compensation, $400,999 in contributions to employee benefit plans and $140,603 from an expense account and other allowances. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell earned $6.5M for his first seven months in the position, which prorates to an annual salary of $11.2M. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman earned $5.9M in the league's FY ending June 30, 2006, while NBA Commissioner David Stern is "believed to garner around $10[M] annually, but the precise amount is unknown as the NBA central office is not structured as a tax-exempt entity and thus is not required to disclose its tax returns" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 3/10 issue).