UCLA Ordered to Pay Cal $30 Million Over Three Years for Ditching Pac-12

The University of California Board of Regents voted on Tuesday to make UCLA pay Cal $10 million annually for the next three years as a compensatory payment — “Calimony,” if you will — for ditching the Pac-12 in favor of the Big Ten this summer.

When the Board first approved the Bruins’ move in December of 2022, one of the conditions for their departure was subsidizing the Bears between $2 million and $10 million, depending on the value of the Pac-12’s media deal. Of course, that deal never materialized and the conference ultimately collapsed. The UC Regents got involved soon after Democratic governor Gavin Newsom criticized UCLA’s move.

Last week, UC system president Michael Drake recommended a $10 million annual tax for six years. He cited “an approximately $50 million difference between UCLA’s Big Ten contract and UC Berkeley’s agreement with the ACC.”

But after a pre-vote discussion on Tuesday, the Board decided to cut the length of UCLA’s payments from six years to three, halving their “Calimony” total from $60 million to $30 million. However, the UC regents reserve the right to revisit the issue in 2027 and potentially extend the payment period if revenues or expenses for either school exceed projections by more than 10%.

“We historically haven’t done anything like this where we take from one campus and give to another,” said UC regent Keith Ellis, the lone dissenting vote against the “Calimony” payments. “Playing, I guess, Robin Hood.”

Cal is slated to receive just over $20 million in media revenue from the ACC for its first seven years in the conference — about a third of what UCLA is projected to rake in as a member of the Big Ten. Both schools are expected to spend an additional $10 million a year on travel-related expenses.

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Both athletic departments are facing serious budget issues. UCLA’s athletic department has lost money for five years in a row, including a $36.6 million deficit last year. Meanwhile, Cal ran an $8.8 million deficit last year despite a $36.7 million boost from the university.

The ACC’s future appears unstable as well, with Florida State and Clemson mounting legal challenges against the conference’s $140 million exit fee.