$10 million subsidy proposal for Cal athletics amid UCLA to Big Ten transition creating $50 million parity in latest conference realignment move

The Pac-12 realignment worked well for UCLA, giving the school millions of dollars in extra revenue while moving to the Big Ten. However, a recommendation has been made that would have the Bruins subsidize Cal athletics for leaving the Pac-12 and its move to the Atlantic Coast Conference.

This proposal is being considered by the University of California Board of Regents to approve a $10 million annual subsidy from UCLA to the Golden Bears. The Regents oversee several California universities and have been considering a subsidy since UCLA announced it would be moving to the Big Ten over a year ago. The Board of Regents will convene and vote on the proposal on Tuesday.

The recommendation is due to the $60 million a year that UCLA will receive from the Big Ten compared to the $11 million that Cal will get from the ACC. This $49 million difference between the two programs' earnings will last a minimum of seven years and is in part due to revenue share and cross-country travel costs for Cal.

There were other methods announced by the UC Board of Regents for closing the gap in pay disparity after the conference realignment.

The other options announced include the development of "new department revenue streams, additional philanthropic support, consolidating athletic scholarships to the campus Financial Aid and Scholarships Office and an additional extraordinary payout from athletics-related endowed funds."

Other Pac-12 teams involved in the conference realignment

NCAA Football: Washington State at Oregon

UCLA will not be alone in its move from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten in 2024. Oregon, USC and Washington will also be moving to the Big Ten. This will make 18 total teams in Big Ten football this season as the conference continues to grow.

UCLA and USC were the first two programs to leave the Pac-12 during the conference realignment. Their announcements came in June 2022, whereas Washington and Oregon made their deals to join the Big Ten over a year later, in August 2023.

With the addition of these four teams, the Big Ten will no longer have divisions, which will allow programs to continue to play their conference rivals with rotating schedules.

Cal is one of two programs moving to the ACC this year, alongside Stanford. SMU announced it would also be joining the ACC after leaving the American Conference this year.

Four former Pac-12 programs are moving to the Big 12 as part of the conference realignment. This includes Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah. The two remaining programs in the Pac-12, Oregon State and Washington State, will remain independent but have announced scheduling agreements with the Mountain West Conference during their conference realignment.

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