Pasadena Official Says CFP Never Spoke With City About Moving Rose Bowl Game to Texas

When presented with a Dec. 19 statement by the College Football Playoff Committee praising the city for listening to the concerns of the CFP, a city official said there was never any direct conversation between the city and that group.

In a Dec. 19 press release, CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock announced the CFP was moving the game scheduled to be played in the Rose Bowl to AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Hancock said the CFP was grateful to Rose Bowl officials and the city of Pasadena. 

“They have worked hard to listen to the concerns of the CFP, the teams that might have played there, and their state and government officials,” Hancock said in his statement. “The Tournament of Roses has acted in the best interest of the people who live in Southern California. And we’re grateful to Cotton Bowl and AT&T Stadium officials for their ability to make this late switch possible.”

A city official told Pasadena Now the city never saw any documents and had no idea what the CFP’s “concerns” were.

The press release was issued days before the Pasadena City Council met in closed session to discuss the use of the Rose Bowl Game name after the game was moved.

In the release, the CFP said the “The Tournament of Roses has acted in the best interest of the people who live in Southern California.”

The CFP and the tournament claim the game was moved after the CFP declared a force majeure, due to rising COVID-19 cases in Pasadena. A force majeure relieves the parties involved in a contract from performing contractual obligations due to certain circumstances beyond their control.

According to letters by the city’s attorneys, the CFP moved the game to Arlington so they could sell tickets to the game and that the tournament could have still put the game on in an empty stadium, much like the NFL and NBA. 

The city also points out that the CFP and the tournament were giving in to Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly, who threatened to boycott the game if fans were not allowed into the stadium. More than 18,000 tickets were sold in Arlington, Texas.

The tournament cited advice from Huntington Hospital which said it would not be able to provide emergency aid to players during the game. 

The area near the stadium was already suffering under a COVID-19 surge, forcing nearby hospitals to stop perfoming doing elective surgeries. 

The letter also states that city officials said they found out the game was being moved during the broadcast of a UCLA game, and asserted in a Jan. 7 letter that the CFP and the tournament had been in discussion to move the game for months.

Attorneys for the tournament later told the city to not contact the CFP or ESPN.  

The tournament is suing the city for sole ownership rights to the Rose Bowl Game name.

Although the two sides have worked together for decades at putting on the game and the Rose Parade, the relationship turned acrimonious after the tournament agreed to allow the CFP to use the Rose Bowl Game name and its trademarks, which the city says it co-owns. 

On Tuesday, the city called the lawsuit egregious and contentious.

According to lawyers for the Tournament of Roses, the city threatened to send cease and desist letters to prevent the use of the Rose Bowl Game name. 

“What is more, your client has threatened to send cease-and-desist letters to our client’s critical business partners — including ESPN and the College Football Playoff Committee and others — if the semifinal game between Alabama and Notre Dame on January 1, 2021 in  Arlington, Texas is referred to as the Rose Bowl Game,” stated Attorney John P. Mancini of the New York-based law firm Mayer Brown in a Jan. 7 letter to attorneys for the city.

“Stated simply, your client has no right to do so. And if the City interferes with these contracts and relationships in any way, the  Association will hold the City of Pasadena solely responsible for any and all of its damages, including at law and in equity.”

Media outlets began announcing on Dec. 19 that the semifinal game slated to be played at the Rose Bowl would be moved to Arlington Stadium. 

The CFP has not responded to Pasadena Now’s requests for comment.