UCLA has implemented a new policy for reporting football game attendance, moving away from a longstanding practice of counting distributed tickets to instead reporting the scan count, which reflects the number of individuals who entered the Rose Bowl stadium. This change, announced Saturday, aims to provide a heightened level of transparency under new CEO and athletic director Tim Harris.
The scan count for the Bruins' home opener against San Diego State was 31,973. This figure represents the actual number of people who scanned their tickets at the gates.
Previously, UCLA's announced attendance included all tickets distributed, encompassing complimentary tickets, alongside non-ticketed individuals such as players, coaches, staff, vendors, performers, and media. In contrast, USC's announced attendance figure includes only distributed tickets.
This shift in reporting aims to provide a more accurate representation of stadium occupancy. For instance, in September 2022, UCLA announced an attendance of 27,143 for a game against Bowling Green, an all-time low at the Rose Bowl. However, the scan count for that game was only 12,383, less than half of the announced figure. Last year, the announced attendance for the home opener against Utah was 35,032, while the scan count was 27,785.
Universities generally have the autonomy to set their own attendance reporting policies, as major conferences leave these decisions to individual institutions.
Despite the new reporting method, the crowd for the San Diego State game was influenced by several factors, including that UCLA students had not yet returned to classes. New Bruins coach Bob Chesney and Harris made efforts to boost attendance, with Harris purchasing 300 tickets for distribution. The newly introduced Field Club saw nearly 700 attendees for its debut. A promotion also brought a large group of local students to one end zone.
UCLA running back Wayne Knight expressed his enjoyment of playing at the Rose Bowl and optimism about future attendance. "You know, seeing those guys coming out there supporting us, it’s important and it’s going to continue to grow," Knight said. "We know it’s only Week 2 right now and by the end of the year, we’re going to have that thing packed."
Quarterback Nico Iamaleava echoed this sentiment, stating, "I’ve seen a lot more fans in there and we’ve got to keep giving them something to come watch."
The revised attendance policy is expected to prevent discrepancies between announced figures and the actual number of spectators in the stadium.