UCLA Announces Free Tickets for Students in CFB, CBB After Record-Low Attendance Totals

UCLA announced Wednesday that it is offering students free tickets to all football, men's basketball and women's basketball regular-season games during the 2026-27 seasons.

The policy will go into effect during Saturday's Big Ten home-opener at the Rose Bowl against Purdue, and any students who did purchase the Den Pass—a season pass to football and men's basketball—will be refunded.

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According to Ira Gorawara of The Athletic, "UCLA averaged 37,282 fans at the approximately 90,000-seat Rose Bowl in 2025, its lowest full-season home attendance since moving there in 1982. The Bruins have not averaged 60,000 fans at home since 2016."

Students can also purchase up to eight guest passes for home football games, with the exception of the matchup against USC.

One of the issues for UCLA—namely when it comes to football attendance—is that the school's campus at Westwood is about 26 miles away from the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, a decent hike—especially if there is any of L.A.'s infamous traffic—for college students on a Saturday morning or afternoon. UCLA does offer a bus shuttle service for $15 or for a season-pass of $60.

The move to make tickets free comes at a time when UCLA has run a $222.27 million deficit in its sporting department over the past six years, per Gorawara. But CEO and athletic director Tim Harris believes getting students in the stands will have long-term benefits for the program regardless of the short-term revenue cost.

"I view the students not as a revenue source, but as a marketing platform," he said on a recent Bruin Report Online podcast appearance, per Gorawara. "I view the students as part of the entire experience."

"Our students are the heartbeat of UCLA," he added in a statement on Wednesday. "Their passion, energy and pride create an atmosphere that makes a difference for our student-athletes and coaches. We want as many students as possible experiencing UCLA Athletics, supporting their fellow Bruins and helping us build one of the best home environments in college sports. We need our students to show up, be loud, and make a difference."

And now it will be free for them to do so.