The City Owns More Than Just the Name of the Rose Bowl Game

Although the College Football Playoff has every right to move the Jan. 1 game from Pasadena to Texas, they have no right to use the name Rose Bowl Game.

The name is co-owned by the city and the Tournament of Roses Association per a master license agreement.

That agreement also allows other local decision-making powers regarding the game. 

“The Master License Agreement between the City of Pasadena and the Tournament of Roses Associations sets forth the terms and conditions under which the annual Rose Bowl football game is staged,” according to a city staff report. “Pursuant to Section 2.3 of the Agreement, the Tournament’s license to use the Rose Bowl facilities includes the right to stage additional Rose Bowl events as long as they are related to the staging of the Rose Bowl Game or the Rose Parade. Moreover, any additional event(s) are subject to the approval of the City and may be subject to additional terms, including the payment of an additional fee.”

That provision could allow the city to host any two teams willing to play on Jan. 1 in a Rose Bowl Game in the stadium.

On Saturday, the College Football Playoff (CFP) decided to move the game from Pasadena to Texas because the state has barred fans and family members of players from attending the game due to the surging coronavirus.

Permission would require a special meeting of the City Council.

The City Council does not meet again until after the New Year, and as of Sunday afternoon, the CFP does not have the right to call the game the Rose Bowl Game or “The Grandaddy of Them All.”

“It is not yet determined if the CFP semifinal in Arlington will be called the CFP Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Capital One,” the Tournament statement said. “The name is a part of the Master License Agreement and is co-owned by the Pasadena Tournament of Roses and the City of Pasadena.”

Any use of the name for the semifinal reportedly would require permission from the Pasadena City Council.

So far, no special meeting has been scheduled.

Since 2015, the Rose Bowl has been part of the College Football Playoff system, serving as a semifinal game every three years.

This marks the first time in 78 years that the eyes of the world will not be on Pasadena on New Year’s Day. The city has held either the game or the parade every year since 1942, when the game was moved to North Carolina in fear of an attack on the West Coast after Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, plunging the nation into World War II.

The parade was also canceled that year. 

The Rose Bowl Game is the oldest of the nation’s bowl games. The first game was played in January 1902, and the annual tradition began in 1916.