Deluge of Big Ten money helped lower UCLA athletics debt

A pile of Big Ten cash helped UCLA come closer to balancing its athletics department budget.

The Bruins ran a deficit of $21.6 million during the most recent fiscal year ending in June 2025 — down from $51.8 million the previous year — according to financial documents reviewed by The California Post.

The bottom-line improvement came largely as a result of $61.2 million in media rights revenue from the Big Ten, more than triple the $19.9 million the school brought in from its final year as a member of the Pac-12. UCLA also received nearly $13 million in a conference distribution related to College Football Playoff, bowl game and NCAA Tournament appearances, up from $8.7 million in the Pac-12.

For a second consecutive year, the university provided $30 million in direct institutional support and also paid the remaining deficit, bringing the balance to zero.

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“The 2024-25 season was our first full season in the Big Ten Conference, and the financials reflect what we anticipated during the transition,” a UCLA athletics spokesperson said in a statement. “Revenue increased, driven largely by our conference media rights and distributions, while expenses also rose due to transition-related costs and increased investments in student-athlete well-being and support.

“Fiscal responsibility remains a priority, and we are actively reviewing spending and identifying efficiencies while continuing to work with campus leadership on a multi-year plan to ensure long-term stability in a rapidly changing college athletics landscape.”

Those who have been watching UCLA’s athletics department finances closely might note that it’s the seventh consecutive year that the Bruins have run in the red, the tab now totaling $241.1 million in shortfalls that the university has covered.

It certainly didn’t help that UCLA was forced to make its first $10 million “Calimony” payment to sister school California after the UC Regents voted to penalize UCLA for abandoning the Pac-12. UCLA will have to make an identical payment in each of the next two years as part of the arrangement.

UCLA also paid a whopping $64.6 million in coach and staff compensation, partly as a result of an expanded staff during football coach DeShaun Foster’s first season. The school paid $14.5 million for travel expenses during its first year in the Big Ten, up from $9.5 million during its final year in the Pac-12, though $2 million of the former amount was for nonconference football trips to Hawaii and LSU.

As part of an increased commitment to nutrition, mental health and academic support in the wake of its conference switch, UCLA paid $8.5 million in meal costs, providing its Olympic sports athletes a fourth meal each day. During its final year in the Pac-12, UCLA had paid $5.9 million for meals.

UCLA’s revenue included $13 million in contributions during the second-highest fundraising year in the history of its athletics department, though some of those gifts were pledges for future years. Ticket sales were up nearly $2 million over the previous year for all sports.

UCLA’s next fiscal budget will reflect the latest challenge confronting athletics departments across the country – revenue sharing. The school committed to paying the maximum $20.5 million in revenue sharing with athletes during the first year it was allowed under the House settlement.