People are starting to notice

From Pasadena Now: UCLA’s athletic department is running an enormous debt according to a letter sent from the Academic Senate to college leaders. Last year, the university fronted the athletics department $30 million to help cover an $80 million shortfall, according to media reports. According to a May 23 letter obtained by Pasadena Now, and addressed to Chancellor Julio Frenk and Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Darnell Hunt, Senate Chair Kathy Bawn, UCLA Athletics has operated at a deficit for six consecutive years, accumulating $219 million in losses while the campus has imposed hiring freezes, weighed cuts to teaching assistants and warned faculty that terminated federal research grants will not be backstopped by the university...

The letter from the Academic Senate said continued financial support for the beleaguered athletics program is undermining the university’s academic mission at a time of deepening budget cuts. The letter states that in 2024, UCLA Athletics generated roughly $100 million in revenue while incurring $180 million in expenses. The resulting $80 million deficit was partially offset by a $30 million subsidy from the campus budget.

Despite the red ink, the Senate said athletics spending has continued to rise. UCLA Athletics is expected to face an additional $22 million in costs in 2025 related to settlements in class-action lawsuits against the NCAA, while anticipated Big Ten media rights revenue of $60 million to $75 million will not be enough to offset current spending levels, according to the letter...

The Senate criticized executive compensation and recent administrative hires within athletics, noting that the athletics department has not posted a balanced budget during Jarmond’s tenure, and noted [UCLA Athletic Director] Jarmond recently received a contract upgrade with a salary exceeding $1.5 million annually... The Senate called for an immediate end to campus subsidies for athletics, including loans, and renewed demands for greater faculty consultation on budget decisions.

Full story at https://pasadenanow.com/main/ucla-athletics-reportedly-facing-enormous-debt-amid-effort-to-leave-rose-bowl-and-campus-budget-cuts.