LOS ANGELES -- The city of Pasadena, California, and the Rose Bowl Operating Company have sued UCLA for allegedly trying to move its college football games from one of the sport's most iconic stadiums to the much newer SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
The 200-page lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday and obtained by ESPN, accuses UCLA of "profoundly" betraying trust by attempting to relocate its home games from the facility the Bruins have called home for 43 years to the home of the NFL's Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers.
"The City expects UCLA will honor the terms of the [lease] agreement, and the City Council will do everything in its power to protect and defend the City's contractual rights," the city of Pasadena said in a statement issued Thursday. "... The City of Pasadena and the Rose Bowl Stadium, steadfast partners to UCLA for more than four decades, are extremely disappointed with UCLA's attempt to terminate the lease."
UCLA's current lease runs through 2044. But the stadium is 26 miles from campus, and the Bruins (3-5, 3-2 Big Ten) have struggled with attendance in recent years. This season, UCLA's average attendance for its four home games is roughly 35,000.
SoFi Stadium opened in September 2020, is about 12 miles from UCLA's campus and has a capacity of 70,240.
"This lawsuit arises in an era when money too often eclipses meaning and the pursuit of profit threatens to erase the very traditions that breathe life into institutions," the suit claims. "Some commitments are too fundamental to be traded away."
UCLA has undergone several major changes over the past two seasons. It joined USC, Washington and Oregon in leaving their longtime conference home, the Pac-12, for the Big Ten in 2024.
Earlier this season, the Bruins fired second-year coach DeShaun Foster and replaced him with interim coach Tim Skipper. They've also changed offensive and defensive coordinators this season.
The Los Angeles Times reported that UCLA's outside counsel, David L. Schrader, sent a letter to Pasadena attorney Nima Mohebbi in March saying the school's efforts to conduct "preliminary discussions" about relocating games did not constitute a "material breach" of its contract.
"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, said Thursday in a statement to ESPN.
Pasadena officials and stadium representatives claim a potential move could cost Pasadena and its residents more than $1 billion in damages. City officials said in the suit that taxpayers have funded more than $150 million in renovations with an additional $130 million in bonds that were recently refinanced for additional upgrades.
"The Rose Bowl has acted with transparency and integrity, not only fulfilling but exceeding its obligations under the lease agreement, investing significant time, effort, and financial resources into the partnership with UCLA, including ongoing major renovation work," the city of Pasadena also said in its statement. "The potential economic and reputational damage of UCLA's attempt to break its lease is significant to the Rose Bowl Stadium, Pasadena residents, and the local and regional economy."
The Rose Bowl, a designated National Historic Landmark, is best known for hosting the "granddaddy" of college football's bowl games since 1922 and has a seating capacity of about 89,000. The Bruins have called the Rose Bowl home since leaving the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 1982.
ESPN's Paolo Uggetti and The Associated Press contributed to this report.