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Report: Holiday Bowl files lawsuit against UCLA, Pac-12

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The Holiday Bowl is suing both the Pac-12 and UCLA for more than $3 million in damages, according to Brett McMurphy of the Action Network.

The suit, which was filed in Superior Court in San Diego County on Tuesday, is regarding the Pac-12's refusal to reimburse the Holiday Bowl after UCLA backed out of the 2021 game hours before kickoff.

The Holiday Bowl claims it lost more than $3 million as a result - despite not making its annual payments of $3.2 million to both the Pac-12 and ACC because of the abrupt cancelation - after it had provided refunds for ticket revenue, sponsorship deals, and television network broadcast rights.

Several Bruins players reportedly tested positive for COVID-19 the morning of the contest. If the team had participated, some players would've had to apparently play out of position, increasing their injury risk.

After the conference's reluctance to compensate the Holiday Bowl for the 2021 cancellation, the Holiday Bowl didn't pay the Pac-12 for the 2022 game in which Oregon represented the conference. The Holiday Bowl was informed that it'd face a lawsuit if it didn't pay the Pac-12 for the Ducks' participation in last year's contest by May 31, per McMurphy.

The Holiday Bowl's executive director, Mark Neville, declined to comment Wednesday morning. Meanwhile, Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff said last July that the two sides were working towards a resolution.

"The Holiday Bowl has been a great partner of ours," Kliavkoff said. "We intend for them to continue to be a great partner of ours. We're constantly talking with them about what happened (in 2021), figuring how to move forward together."

The Holiday Bowl has been played annually and featured a Pac-12 member over the last 23 years. It's the third-longest bowl game in the conference behind the Rose Bowl and Sun Bowl.

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