The body suffered heavily in 2020 due to COVID-19, namely the cancellation of the men's March Madness basketball tournament which alone cost it $800 million (£591 million/€699 million).

The competition returned in a bubble format last year in Indiana which saw NCAA members receive $613 million (£453 million/€536 million) through distributed central funding.

It was a similar return to the pre-pandemic levels, with $611 million (£451 million/€534 million) given out in 2019.

As spectators were still absent in 2021, the NCAA cashed in on $81 million (£59 million/€70 million) in loss of revenue insurance.

This policy is not available for the body in the future.

"Management is exploring alternative solutions to pandemic risk management and will continue to monitor the impact of Covid-19 during fiscal year 2021/22," read an NCAA statement.

The past year also saw the NCAA's revenue from broadcast deals with CBS and Turner return to a pre-pandemic amount.

It received approximately $850 million (£628 million/€744 million) in media rights fees, a $113 million (£83 million/€98 million) increase from 2020.

The NCAA is set to see revenue from its television deals reach $870 million (£643 million/€762 million) in 2022 and claims that it will surpass $900 million (£665 million/€788 million) from 2025.

The collegiate body's investment income also increased for the second consecutive year, climbing from $40.5 million (£29 million/€35 million) to $60 million (£44 million/€52 million).

The flagship March Madness is set to take place from March 15 to April 4, with the championship game to be hosted in New Orleans.

Tickets for the event are on sale so the NCAA should be able to recoup any losses reported in 2020.