Report: UCLA close to finalizing deal that will move home games from Rose bowl to SoFi Stadium

UCLA football is reportedly finalizing a deal to play its home games at SoFi Stadium, the home of the NFL‘s Los Angeles Chargers and Rams located in Inglewood, according to 247 Sports’ Bruin Report Online. This would be a major change for the Bruins football program, which has played its home games inside the iconic Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena since 1982.

The city of Pasadena and the Rose Bowl Operating Company have already filed suit against UCLA to halt the move, according to the Los Angeles Times, but UCLA athletic department sources reportedly told Bruin Report Online that the move to SoFi Stadium is a “near-done deal,” according to the 247 Sports site.

While UCLA’s current lease with the Rose Bowl reportedly runs through June 2044, the current working plan is for the Bruins to begin playing their home football games inside SoFi Stadium beginning in 2026, per Bruin Report Online. That would require UCLA to buy out its current lease with the Rose Bowl at an estimated cost of $60-80 million, according to Bruin Report Online.

The movitation for the move is reportedly completely financial in nature, with UCLA administrators allegedly projecting the revenue generated from SoFi Stadium’s premium seating and luxury suites will be a financial boon for the program at a time when money is king in college football.

Rose Bowl Stadium, Pasadena sues UCLA for attempting to move home games to SoFi Stadium

As mentioned, the city of Pasadena — devastated by the historic wildfires that ravaged Southern California in January — filed suit against UCLA in late October in an attempt to stop the move to SoFi Stadium, according to both the Los Angeles Times and Associated Press.

“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, per the AP. “Some commitments are too fundamental to be traded away.”

Per the Los Angeles Times, Pasadena officials say taxpayers have invested more than $150 million in Rose Bowl renovations. On Thursday, UCLA vice chancellor for strategic communications Mary Osako responded to the Los Angeles Times‘ report.

“While we continue to evaluate the long-term arrangement for UCLA Football home games, no
decision has been made,” Osako wrote, according to the LA Times’ Ben Bolch.

The lawsuit reportedly claims that if UCLA leaves the Rose Bowl for SoFi Stadium, city residents could suffer up to a billion dollars in monetary damages. UCLA has played five home games at the Rose Bowl this season, with a record of 2-3 following Saturday’s 28-21 loss to Nebraska. The team has averaged just over 37,000 fans during those games, which would challenge for an all-time low for a program that fired head football coach and alum DeShaun Foster after an 0-3 start to the season.

— On3’s Grant Grubbs contributed to this report.