LA Olympics 2028: Everything To Know So Far

Weeks of deliberations finally came to an end on Monday when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) reached its decision to let Los Angeles, California host the 2028 Summer Olympic Games, handing over the reins of the 2024 Olympics to Paris.

Los Angeles and Paris competed to host the Olympic Games, scheduled to be held every four years, and the former decided to back down since Paris was determined not to wait eight years to host the Olympics.

“The Games in 2028 will give us the seed of a new Olympic legacy here in Los Angeles and around the world,” L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti said at a news conference, the Washington Post reported.

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President Donald Trump also congratulated Los Angeles for bagging the deal for hosting the 2028 Olympics. The following is his statement posted on Twitter by CNBC reporter Steve Kopack:

Here is what is known so far about the L.A. 2028 Olympic Games:

1. This would be the third time that South California will be hosting the Summer Olympics. Los Angeles hosted them in 1932 and 1984. Georgia hosted the games in 1996. As homage to both the 1932 and 1984 games held in L.A., the University Of Southern California (USC) has planned to spend $270 million to renovate Memorial Coliseum, the LA times reported.

2. Unlike the 2016 Olympics, where Rio De Janeiro, Brazil had to build 14 venues from scratch in preparation for the big event, existent venues in Los Angeles are already well-equipped to host thousands of athletes in 2028. Hence, L.A. will be saving billions on constructing new venues. Also, the athletes and press will be housed in dormitories at the University of California and the USC, further cutting out expenses of having to build enormous villages. Nevertheless, according to ESPN, Los Angeles City Council and the state of California will be contributing $250 million each to cover unexpected costs.

3. Apparently, 1984 has been the only Olympic Games in history to have been profitable for the host country. Garcetti seems geared for a rerun of the previous success the Olympics brought to L.A. “The cost to taxpayers to put this plan together is nothing,” Garcetti told ESPN. “There’s risk. Eyes wide open, it could be something. But I’m close to 100 percent confident,” he added.

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4. Hosting the Games would cost L.A. an estimated $5.3 billion, predicted the L.A. bid committee, but the entire cost would be covered by sponsorships, ticket sales and other sources of revenue. “I can look people in the eye and say this is a much stronger deal financially,” Garcetti said, LA Times reported.

5. Also part of the deal struck with the IOC is a $180 million advance that is to be paid immediately to L.A. officials in charge of hosting the 2028 Olympics, which is a provision rarely made by the committee. Most of the financial contributions made by the IOC are forwarded to the host country only a couple of years before the event takes place.

6. While Paris will receive $1.7 billion of the IOC’s broadcast and sponsorship revenues for the 2024 Olympic Games, those revenues will increase to $2 billion by the time Los Angeles hosts the Games.

7. There is also a $487.6 million contingency plan, money that is traditionally set aside until the end of the Games to cover unexpected costs incurred. If the Games wrap up within or under the budget, a major chunk of the surplus money from the contingency plan goes to Los Angeles, which was the reason the 1984 Olympics was profitable.