City of Angels’ Olympics: Everything you need to know

The Los Angeles 2028 Olympics will be the first summer games to be held in the United States in more than three decades. The opening ceremony will take place on the 14th July 2028 and will close on the 30th. Also, the Paralympic Games will open on the 15th August and continuing until the 27th. This occasion will mark the third time LA has been a host to the games as well as Paris and London.

Venues

With sustainability in mind no new venues will be built for LA28. Plenty of iconic Los Angeles area stadiums and arenas will also be deployed, including the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, SoFi Stadium, LA Live, and Crypto.com Arena. The committee wants to share the beauty of the vast Californian landscape with competitions taking place in 80 venues across the state from as north as San Francisco Bay to as south as San Diego.

Which Sports are in?

5 new sports are approved for LA28 as well as some revived disciplines. Additionally, roughly 10,500 athletes are set to compete at the LA games

  • Cricket will be played for the first time since 1900
  • Lacrosse will be making a comeback as an Olympic Sport.
  • Squash will take it’s place after years of campaigning to be accepted as an Olympic sport.
  • Basketball/Softball was omitted during the 2024 Paris Olympics but to the delight of the spectators it is back for the LA games.
  • Flag football will also make its debut at the Olympics with paraclimbing listed to make it’s debut at the Paralympics as a new sport.
  • It’s hard to image Golden State games without surfing, skateboard=ding and sport climbing as they are set to return.
  • However, Boxing has not been cleared for Los Angeles. The IOC has stripped recognition of the International Boxing Association (IBA) for what it said was a failure to address finance and governance reforms

How to get tickets to the 2028 Summer Olympics

The tickets for the Summer Olympics 2028 will be sold online. The official LA28 Olympic and Paralympic Games website is worth signing up to receive updates.

Olympics as a revenue producer

In 2019, two years after Los Angeles was awarded the Games, Eric Garcetti, then the mayor, said he expected the city to turn over a $1 billion profit,

For the current mayor, Karen Bass, hosting the Olympics is more than an opportunity to showcase familiar attractions like Hollywood or Venice Beach. It’s also about connecting visitors with small businesses citywide. Bass has talked about that what determines success and says that everybody must benefit for something to be successful which is one of her aims for LA28. With ticket sales, sponsorships, global television rights and the International Olympic Committee the goal doesn’t seem out of reach. Furthermore, there is a pledge to host the games in the most sustainable way utilising existing venues and facilities, devolving public transport and dealing with the homelessness issue (around 18,000 temporary homes are being built.) LA Games promise to be a showstopper and a game changer. Actress Jessica Alba, who is on the Los Angeles 2028 board of directors, said the Games will present all different aspects of the city’s culture, from Hollywood to fashion to food, Alba has stated that

“I don’t like being the center of attention”

However, she has stated that she wants LA to be the main character of the upcoming games and the Olympics.

Bring it on.