Pasadena, Rose Bowl sue UCLA over alleged plans to maneuver soccer video games to SoFi Stadium

UCLA has “long been negotiating” behind closed doorways to maneuver its residence soccer video games from the Rose Bowl to SoFi Stadium, regardless of a lease that runs till 2044, a lawsuit dated Wednesday alleges.

The swimsuit was filed by town of Pasadena and the Rose Bowl Operating Company, which runs the 103-year-old stadium. It stated UCLA’s outdoors authorized counsel instructed town and Rose Bowl on Oct. 18 that the Bruins would cease taking part in video games there, “contending that UCLA leadership, lawmakers in Sacramento, and other decision-makers had vetted and approved the decision.” Conversations among the many college’s counsel, town and the Rose Bowl Operating Company had been occurring since at the very least March.

The swimsuit alleges UCLA gave each private and non-private assurances about its partnership with the Rose Bowl earlier than it “abruptly decided to abandon the stadium” and “did so in secret.” Over a number of conferences between UCLA and SoFi officers, discussions had been detailed sufficient to debate seating charts, income splits and the way the Bruins’ transfer may match into a bigger improvement undertaking, based on the swimsuit.

If UCLA strikes out, the swimsuit contends that “the harm that would befall Pasadena and its residents could easily exceed a billion dollars (or more),” citing “hundreds of millions invested by partners, donors, and taxpayers to renovate the Rose Bowl Stadium and complete other projects undertaken at UCLA’s request.”

The Los Angeles Times first reported the lawsuit, which was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court. It names UCLA and the California Board of Regents as defendants, and it seeks an order requiring the varsity to honor the remaining 19 years of its lease. The Bruins have been taking part in their residence video games on the Rose Bowl since 1982.

“While we continue to evaluate the long-term arrangement for UCLA football home games, no decision has been made,” Mary Osako, UCLA vice chancellor for strategic communications, stated in an announcement Thursday.

On Tuesday, town of Pasadena’s legal professional sought affirmation from the Bruins that they might proceed taking part in on the Rose Bowl by way of June 2044, based on an exhibit connected to the lawsuit. An outdoors legal professional for UCLA, Jordan McCrary, responded that the Bruins intend to maintain taking part in on the venue “for the remainder of the football season.”

“That has not and will not change,” McCrary wrote. “So, nothing justifies the Rose Bowl’s threat to rush to court.”

Pasadena stated it issued $150 million in bonds in 2010 to fund stadium renovations and refinanced $130 million in bonds final yr. The Rose Bowl Operating Company has deliberate “approximately $200 million in capital improvements to the Rose Bowl Stadium over the next twenty years,” the swimsuit stated. The upgrades had been “predicated on a stable, multi-decade tenancy by UCLA,” based on the swimsuit.

According to the grievance, UCLA’s lease can solely be terminated within the occasion of a “Game-Threatening Default,”a state of affairs stopping a scheduled residence sport. Pasadena contends no such situation has occurred, making any transfer a breach of contract.

“That lease agreement is unambiguous, explicitly stating there is no option for UCLA to terminate the lease prior to its expiration in 2044,” town stated in an announcement Thursday.

UCLA’s athletics division accrued a $51.8 million deficit in 2024. At a UC Regents assembly in May, athletic director Martin Jarmond claimed the varsity is lacking out on $15 million to $25 million a yr as a result of its lease settlement doesn’t embody suite- or club-level income.

UCLA chief monetary officer Stephen Agostini stated in the identical assembly that with working deficits persisting, “what you generate out of your facilities” has grow to be essential to this system’s backside line. The Rose Bowl has agreed to construct a brand new premium seating part by 2026, however even that repair could not bridge the monetary hole UCLA faces.

SoFi Stadium, which is residence to the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers and Rams, opened in 2020 and boasts greater than 260 luxurious suites, based on its website.

Though the Rose Bowl’s postcard backdrop usually masks it, the 26-mile distance between the college campus in Westwood and the stadium in Pasadena is a logistical headache. Students both drive and pay for parking or pile onto the varsity’s “Rooter Bus,” a fleet of coach buses that transport college students to and from the stadium, a journey that may stretch near an hour every means.

This disconnect has proven up within the bleachers, with attendance declining to file lows. UCLA averaged simply greater than 35,000 followers by way of its first 4 residence video games this season — on tempo for this system’s lowest attendance since transferring to the Rose Bowl in 1982.

The Bruins completed above solely Northwestern and Maryland in Big Ten attendance figures in 2024, averaging about 46,805 per sport in a stadium that may seat 89,702.