How do the UCLA Bruins plan to keep up in the NIL era? By upping their access game. Ben Bolch of the California Post reported on Thursday that UCLA basketball will begin selling 12 courtside seats near UCLA’s, and UCLA’s opponents, benches.
These tickets will unsurprisingly cost an arm and a leg, with the California Post reporting that the Bruins hope to raise “roughly $2 million” from the so-called Hollywood Seats. Two million over the course of the season is projected to run around six figures per seat, which is a way for UCLA to generate some extra cash.
According to Bolch, the Hollywood Seats will be first offered to donors and corporate sponsors, who are also the people most likely to have an extra $100,000 lying around to spend on getting a true Mick Cronin Experience.
It won’t be just the men’s team that gets to host the Hollywood Seats, the exclusive seats are expected to be available for “a select number” of women’s games for the defending champion UCLA squad.
Bolch illustrates that the Hollywood Seats are just the latest adjustment for a UCLA athletic program that’s still adjusting and catching up to the NIL era, where it’s been proven that elite teams require elite spending.
“The new courtside seats and lounge are just part of UCLA’s efforts to generate additional revenue while remaining competitive in an increasingly cutthroat college sports landscape,” Bolch wrote. “The Bruins have sold more than 400 premium seats associated with a new field-level club at the Rose Bowl, which will generate at least $1 million of new revenue. Around 80% of those sales involve new season ticket holders, meaning that the team is attracting fans who had not been invested previously in making such a big commitment.”
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: UCLA basketball begins to sell Hollywood Seats near the team’s bench
Reporting by Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dylan McNeill, UCLA Wire | USA TODAY Network
