The names “Los Angeles Marathon” and “L.A. Marathon” are owned by the city of Los Angeles. In order to use those names, the marathon operator pays royalties to the city.
The operator — the foundation of former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt — has asked the city to restructure the contract between the parties and, in so doing, forgo what the city lists as $442,840 in outstanding royalty payments.
Two top city executives have recommended the City Council deny the request, according to a memo obtained by The Times.
There is no date set for the City Council to decide whether to concur, or to direct the city executives to negotiate a resolution. The contract expires in 2029.
The issue comes as another McCourt entity awaits a council vote — expected this fall — on whether to approve its proposed gondola from Union Station to Dodger Stadium.
The foundation pays the city a fee every year to cover the cost of city services for the marathon, among them police, paramedics and traffic management. The royalty fee is separate.
Since 2004, according to city records, a royalty payment is triggered in any year the marathon’s total revenues exceed $3.87 million. The amount of the payment can vary from year to year.
The foundation wants to increase the trigger amount, meaning the marathon could generate more revenue without owing any royalty payments. The foundation also wants to adjust that trigger amount annually for inflation and allow deductions of certain revenues, all to reflect the escalating costs of staging a world-class marathon, spokeswoman Meg Treat said.
“Our goal is to modernize the calculation,” she said. “Using benchmarks created over 20 years ago, the existing calculation is antiquated.”
In their memo to the council, city administrative officer Matt Szabo and chief legislative analyst Sharon Tso said the foundation’s requested changes could result “in no royalties to the city” and would result “in negative fiscal impacts to the city, particularly during a time of fiscal constraints.”
Former Dodgers owner attends a UEFA Champions League match between Olympique Marseille, the team he owns, and Newcastle United in November.
(Alexander Hassenstein / Getty Images)
Szabo did not return three messages seeking comment. The $442,840 reflects unpaid royalties from 2022, when marathon operators first raised this issue, through 2024.
Marathon operators told the city that the 2024 and 2025 marathons sold out, meaning revenue growth — and the likelihood of significant royalty payments to the city — could require increased capacity. The race starts at Dodger Stadium and ends in Century City, where a Metro D Line station is scheduled to open next year.
“We are currently limited in growing the marathon’s field size due to constraints on parking, access, and safety at our finish line in Century City,” Treat said. “We’re eager for the Metro station at Avenue of the Stars to open, as we believe this would allow us to increase our registrations.”
The city memo noted that, in 2023, the operators moved the prerace expo from the city-owned Los Angeles Convention Center to Dodger Stadium, where McCourt holds 50% ownership of the stadium parking lots.
