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The Dagger

Thu Jul 02, 2009 10:24 am EDT

UCLA basketball now only for the very, very rich

By Eamonn Brennan

Too often in sports we mistake "money" for "support." Sure, there are the big-time collegiate boosters, the guys who anonymously come out of the woodwork to pony up a million bucks when a certain troublesome coach needs a buyout, pronto. I get that this is how college sports work. And hey, many boosters are really big fans of their team that also happen to have tons of money with which to express that fandom. Nothing wrong with that.

But there's a fine line there, and it's when we begin to forget that money does not perfectly equate to fandom. Supporting a team comes in many forms. Some of them are financially agnostic.

It is in that spirit, then, that you'll probably read these figures in horror: UCLA is revamping Pauley Pavilion and with it their ticketing system, and if you want a frontcourt seat, you better be ready to pony up the dough. From the AP:

Courtside seats will require a $500,000 donation to the capital campaign, payable over five years, plus an annual donation of $17,000 per seat to the Wooden Athletic Fund. A one-time donation of $30,000 or more assures up to four seats mostly between the baskets in the lower half of the arena. Those tickets require annual Wooden Fund donations of $2,000 to $4,000 per seat, plus the face value of the tickets.

Hey, got a spare down payment on a house handy? Want to blow a bit of your kid's trust fund? Have a seat "mostly between the baskets in the lower half of the arena!" That sounds fun! And that doesn't even approach the half-a-mil necessary to get in those courtside digs. Eesh.

Again, this is how college sports work, and you won't see me pulling a William Jennings Bryan here any time soon; rich people should get to spend their money how they want, and if UCLA can draw $500,000 for a basketball seat, more power to them. But it is slightly disconcerting that price increases could price out long time fans, who, though they'd have the most "points" under UCLA's system, will again be subject to more mandatory donations than they might previously have bargained for. I wonder how John Wooden would feel about that.

Related: Pac-10 Basketball

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15 Comments

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  1. ao
    1. Posted by ao Thu Jul 02, 2009 12:02 pm EDT

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    what kind of jackass pays money like that for college basketball anyway yawwwwwn
  2. Ron G
    2. Posted by Ron G Fri Jul 03, 2009 2:25 pm EDT

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    Face it, athletic programs cost money. Upgrading facilities costs money, hiring quality coaches costs money, running a sports program which has produced more NCAA championships (104) than any other school costs money. You ain't going to get what you need by sending out form letters to alums soliciting donations, and you ain't going to get any money from the state, so if UCLA can get it by offering up prime seats to donors, I'm all for it. If anyone can come up with alternatives for raising the millions of dollars that are needed, go ahead and post your suggestion. Otherwise, quit your complaining.
  3. FROGman
    3. Posted by FROGman Sat Jul 04, 2009 12:31 am EDT

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    It sounds like a lot of money, but as I understand it, it's a pittance compared to what UK requires for its best seats. As a loyal UCLA fan living in Wildcat country, I wish I could say that UCLA was different in how it treated its fans. Well, it used to be different. Now they're chasing the green like everyone else. Sad. So sad.
  4. John G
    4. Posted by John G Sat Jul 04, 2009 7:35 am EDT

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    just a sad commentary of our world today
  5. drock27
    5. Posted by drock27 Sat Jul 04, 2009 11:32 am EDT

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    and what do the student athletes get in return? This is big business not just an athletic program.
  6. BEN
    6. Posted by BEN Sat Jul 04, 2009 4:06 pm EDT

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    Blame it on Coach Cal...I bet he has something to do with it.
  7. Raj
    7. Posted by Raj Sun Jul 05, 2009 7:27 pm EDT

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    Money is Power!
  8. jim m
    8. Posted by jim m Mon Jul 06, 2009 7:31 am EDT

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    This is school games... for students to play against other schools... or colleges... what has big money got anything to do with it.... student tickets... how much do they cost ? That is what is important to me... student games right?
  9. Jeremy S
    9. Posted by Jeremy S Mon Jul 06, 2009 9:23 am EDT

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    Anyone who thinks that college basketball isn't big business is fooling themselves. The NCAA and the universities make large sums of money on the backs of college athletes for the price of a 4 year scholarship. It probably isn't necessary to renovate Pauley to the extent that UCLA wants the renovation, but that is what will bring in the big bucks. People need to stop being so naive in thinking that college athletics is "all about the kids." What a joke....
  10. Cole Riggins
    10. Posted by Cole Riggins Mon Jul 06, 2009 11:48 am EDT

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    And the second a student athlete takes $50 to go out to a nice dinner, they are kicked out of school and the university gets put on probation. Makes sence.
  11. don
    11. Posted by don Mon Jul 06, 2009 2:20 pm EDT

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    Sounds like a better bargain to be a ZAGS fan.
  12. bargesurfer
    12. Posted by bargesurfer Mon Jul 06, 2009 6:36 pm EDT

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    Drock27, a student athlete that goes to UCLA for 4 years gets the opportunity to have an education that would cost the following:
    Resident $26.5K / Year (4 Years = $106K)
    Non-Resident $49.2 / Year (4 Years = $196.8K)
    I went to the University of Arkansas on a full scholarship. While I agree that student athletes should be given better stipends to live on due to the fact that it is nearly impossible to hold a job, if a student athlete applies themselves they stand to gain a very significant benefit regardless of the university. I think where we could stand to see some improvement is situations where a student athlete is injured and never capable of playing again. I think they should get a free ride through the period of time they would have had including a redshirt year or perhaps a year longer. I also think that schools should be required to offer 4 year scholarships. This would put kids in school that want to be there for school, and one year "wannabe's" could go pro. But if a student athlete doesn't honor his committment to the University and gets kicked off of a team then I think they shouldn't be eligible for the pros until that committment expires. This would take a collaborative effort by the pro leagues and NCAA.
    I'm not picking on you, just trying to give you another view.
  13. A. J.
    13. Posted by A. J. Tue Jul 07, 2009 4:26 pm EDT

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    Maybe they will up the ante for stipends to the student athletes.
  14. Huz
    14. Posted by Huz Wed Jul 08, 2009 11:12 am EDT

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    wow.. this is pathetic... i cant imagine any1 wanting to pay half a mil to sit in seats "mostly" between the baskets. Besides, UCLA doesnt even have a good team coming in next year.. they arent even ranked in the preseason top 25!
  15. Karl Marx
    15. Posted by Karl Marx Wed Jul 08, 2009 8:14 pm EDT

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    U-c-l-a, u-c-l-a, suck suck suck

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