How to Make the Most of the Student Viewing Experience for Sports at UC Berkeley
UC Berkeley boasts a rich history of successful Cal Athletics teams, but many students may not be aware of how financially feasible it is to see our decorated programs in action, or even to create an athletic team with your friends. There’s the football team, which pulled off what’s considered one of the greatest plays in the history of college sports in the 1984 Big Game. Our women’s soccer team has included greats such as Alex Morgan, and in men’s basketball, we have the golden alumnus NBA Hall-of-Famer Jason Kidd. This article shares many ways in which you can participate in the overall athletics scene at Berkeley and in the Bay Area.
Student Spectating: Free Tickets & Combo Passes
Believe it or not, you can watch all the home games for most sports teams the entire school year for free; and if you have your heart set on football and men’s basketball too, then you can catch all the home games for $125 (sample 2025 pricing). Apart from those two exceptions, football and men’s basketball games, showing a valid Cal 1 Card student ID at the ticket booth will get you a free ticket into the venue for a Cal game. If you decide to purchase tickets for both of the teams’ home games, the Student Combo Pass includes:
- 6 home football games (including the Big Game hosted at home every other year).
- Priority access to home men’s basketball tickets. Combo pass tickets can be claimed in person at the ticket booth outside Haas Pavilion.
The Student Combo Pass is a great deal, and its value is made up easily, even if you can’t attend all the home games. A few football games will do the trick, and in the years when the football Big Game is at Cal (next ones being in 2026 and 2028), that game alone covers the cost, given what you have to pay for a normal ticket. Some of the sports you can watch for free with your Cal 1 Card include:
- Women’s Basketball
- Baseball
- Softball
- Rugby
- Swimming
- Water Polo
- Soccer
- Track and Field
- Gymnastics
What About If You Want to Play Sports?
It is great to get involved and try out some form of organized sport and exercise as a student, while ample resources are available to you. The best thing about a university setting is that if you get a group of people on board, there are so many opportunities when it comes to athletics, whether you’re looking for something totally different, casual, or competitive.
“Fine, I’ll Do It Myself”
Create Your Own: Don’t like the sports options for intramural competition? Nothing’s stopping you from making your own game, and that’s exactly what my friends did last fall! One person in the group invented a game called “Shmorb Ball” that we’d try to play once a week, always starting 17 minutes after the hour (the rules are just as random as that, so I’ll refrain from going into them). Though I was never able to participate due to other commitments and the game died down as people got busier, it was a fun, silly way to unwind and bond as a group where almost everyone was a first-year student.
I use this personal example to show that as long as you have some equipment, rules, and enough people to keep the game going, the Glade (or wherever you’d play) is your oyster!
A few of my friends playing Shmorb Ball at the Glade last September.
“It’s Time to Play the Game!”
The conventional and surely most popular route for playing sports at school (beyond the actual school-sponsored athletic teams themselves) are intramural and club sports.
Intramural (IM) Teams: This option is perfect if you’re looking for a more casual experience where you can make a team and have fun with your friends without the pressure or physical requirements that a competitive setting might have. A lot of people playing intramurals are trying out sports for the first time, so it’s very low-key and the first few weeks are spent on learning the rules. This semester, I tried out intramural Ultimate Frisbee. I joined a team with some graduate students and it was a ton of fun! Playing intramurals opens up the chance to play on some pretty swanky fields too! For example, I played Frisbee at night in the Memorial Stadium! Running and throwing on that field after watching football players use it many times prior was a very cool experience, and my family always liked seeing the photos I sent of the stadium.
Club Teams: If you’re more serious about the sport and want to devote more time to it than once-a-week games like intramural does, that’s what club sports are for. The club teams not only play competitively at their highest level, but will travel to compete regionally, and sometimes nationally, depending on the success of their season. Nevertheless, experience isn’t required and many club sports have more than one team. So just because you didn’t cut the A-team doesn’t mean you won’t make the B-team, for example.
Other Opportunities: Beyond organized teams, there are activities you can try if you’re looking for a more individual experience. The physical education department offers many sports classes from archery to tennis, as well as many dance classes.
If you want to make your own schedule for playing, you can book an area of the RSF for whatever time you want, as long as the equipment and space are available. Beyond the gym, there are basketball and tennis courts, as well as a weight room, and a cool rock-climbing wall that you can use!
Speaking of Rock Climbing…: You don’t have to travel far outside campus to find other rock climbing places beyond the RSF, if that’s your jam. Gyms like Mosaic Boulders (on Telegraph a few blocks from the Southside campus entrance) and Benchmark Climbing (on Shattuck) offer student memberships.
Me and my IM Ultimate Frisbee team posing in Memorial Stadium after the last game of our Spring 2025 season.
Bay Area Sports Teams You Can Go See
Being a student at UC Berkeley means we’re relatively close to many professional sports teams, and with BayPass coming into effect, taking the BART and/or other methods of transit to get there are much more doable and affordable:
- Basketball: Golden State Warriors and Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center in SF, accessible by driving, Caltrain, or BART to Muni Bus/Train
- Baseball: San Francisco Giants at Oracle Arena in SF, accessible by driving, Caltrain, or BART to Muni Bus/Train.
- Football: San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, accessible by driving, or BART to VTA Train.
- Ice Hockey: San Jose Sharks at SAP Center in San Jose, accessible by driving, or BART to VTA Rapid Transit (500)
- Soccer: San Jose Earthquakes and Bay FC at PayPal Park in San Jose, accessible by driving, or BART to VTA Bus (60)
- Soccer: Oakland Roots and Oakland Soul at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in San Jose, accessible by driving, or BART(Orange Line- Downtown Berkeley to Coliseum Stop)
Carpe Diem!
We won’t be students at the top public university forever. There’s limited time to enjoy the perks of our Cal 1 Card and the benefits of seeing most of our amazing student athletes compete for free. It’s time to embark on some side quests and make the most of the athletic opportunities near campus!
Nolan Zils, Class of 2027, is majoring in Media Studies and minoring in Journalism and Creative Writing.
Want more?
- Looking for more clubs at Cal? See Melissa’s article on where to start!
- Check out Rachel’s story on Rally Comm Traditions for info on school spirit events
- Want to be around nature while exercising? Read Rachel’s guide on hiking at Berkeley