As it moves into the Bob Chesney era, UCLA football is preserving some familiarity: The Bruins will stay at the Rose Bowl for the 2026 season.
The decision is sure to please scores of fans who wistfully attended the team’s final home game last fall, worried it could be an unceremonious sendoff at the century-old stadium as the school contemplated a possible move to SoFi Stadium.
Now those fans can make their tailgating plans for the Bruins’ home opener against San Diego State on Sept. 12 and the rest of the team’s first season under its new coach.
“UCLA will play the upcoming football season at the Rose Bowl,” Mary Osako, UCLA’s vice chancellor of strategic communications, said in a statement provided to the California Post. “We know how much game day means to Bruins — to our students, alumni and fans who plan their autumn around Saturdays together.
“Our priority is delivering a strong season experience for our student-athletes and our community, and we have great momentum in our football program. During this unprecedented time in college athletics, UCLA will always be guided by what’s best for our student-athletes and the Bruin community.”
Staying at least one more season at the Rose Bowl is believed to be a university-wide decision made in lockstep between top campus administrators and the athletic department as the school navigates a college football landscape that seems to change by the day.
The school remains embroiled in a breach-of-contract lawsuit brought by the City of Pasadena and the Rose Bowl as part of those entities’ attempts to keep UCLA as a tenant at its longtime football home.
The plaintiffs have contended that UCLA’s abandonment of a lease that runs through the 2043 season would constitute “irreparable harm” for which no amount of money could compensate the Rose Bowl and the surrounding community.
Both sides are scheduled to appear in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday for a status conference. The Rose Bowl recently scored a significant victory in the proceedings when UCLA’s bid to move the case to arbitration was denied.
Eventually moving to SoFi Stadium in Inglewood would certainly come with benefits. Among other things, it would cut the team’s 26-mile commute to the Rose Bowl in half while also providing a more modern venue that’s currently home to the NFL’s Rams and Chargers.
It’s also believed that UCLA would receive suite revenue — something it does not get at the Rose Bowl — and financially benefit from a planned mixed-use development project in the Inglewood area.
But there would be drawbacks to a stadium switch beyond the likelihood of having to cut a massive check to the Rose Bowl. Under current policies, tailgating at SoFi Stadium is far more restrictive than at the Rose Bowl, where fans can fire up grills in sprawling parking lots and the surrounding Brookside Golf Course.
The Rose Bowl also continues to modernize in its efforts to keep pace with newer stadiums. For 2026, the iconic venue is scheduled to unveil a $30-million field-level club in the south end zone that will also include premium seating.
UCLA heads into next season with considerable momentum after making what’s been hailed as perhaps the best hire of the last coaching cycle.
Chesney guided James Madison to the College Football Playoff last season and has quickly galvanized a football community longing for success. UCLA hasn’t won a conference title since 1998, which was also the last season the Bruins participated in a Rose Bowl game.
The hope is that Chesney can elevate the Bruins as he has every team along his rise from NCAA Division III to the big time of the Big Ten. Season tickets for next season are already on sale, and sales of premium seats in the south end zone are expected to start soon.
UCLA’s seven-game home schedule for 2026 also includes games against Purdue on Sept. 19, Wisconsin on Oct. 17, Michigan State on Oct. 24, Nevada on Oct. 31, Illinois on Nov. 14 and USC on Nov. 21.
The Bruins are trying to significantly boost attendance after installing giant tarps in the end zones to help mask a stadium that’s often been only half full in recent seasons. UCLA averaged 37,282 fans last season at the Rose Bowl — a record low at the stadium it has called home since the 1982 season.
Spring football practice is scheduled to start April 2. The first chance for fans to see Chesney’s team compete will be at the spring game on May 2, which is expected to be held at the Rose Bowl.
Loyalists of UCLA’s longtime football home might hail going back to the beloved stadium as the first victory of the 2026 season.