Los Angeles, however, has a good track record; the city turned a profit on the 1984 Olympics. The 2028 organizing committee, LA28, has big plans for keeping hosting costs low once again. These include using existing facilities to reduce construction costs and bringing in big corporate sponsorship deals. Unlike past Olympics, LA28 is also allowed to make money by selling temporary naming rights for the sporting venues. In December 2025, LA28 announced it had raised over $2 billion in domestic sponsorships and reportedly predicted coming in under budget.
But LA28’s revenue expectations are overly sunny, says a new report from Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE), an economic justice nonprofit and member of a coalition that opposes bringing the Olympics to the city.
The report argues that L.A. faces serious financial risks, and it calls for the city to consider canceling its hosting agreement or at least renegotiating to scale down the size and costs of the Olympics. LA28 and the city of Los Angeles did not respond to requests for comment.
Key Points
The Costs May Be Unexpectedly High
- L.A.’s latest estimate pegs the costs of the 2028 Olympics at roughly $7 billion (a higher number than its original 2017 estimate). But SAJE says the price is closer to $12 billion when factoring in costs like security, city staff time, increased demand on sanitation services and fast-tracking of certain transit projects. (LA28 has promised to reimburse L.A. for additional city services required for the Games, like security and sanitation, but the partners have not finalized an agreement detailing this arrangement — something that, as of April 2026, was six months overdue.)
- LA28 expects to sell 97 percent of all Olympics tickets. That’s an optimistic prediction, SAJE says, and one that could be far off if the U.S.’s immigration and visa policies — including tales of Immigration and Customs Enforcement detaining a tourist — dampen international attendance.
- L.A. has taken on more financial risk for these Games compared to 1984, the report states. This time, city taxpayers are on the hook to cover the first $270 million of cost overruns, with the state covering the next $270 million and the city covering any remainder. Going over budget is common: A 2016 study found the average Olympics had a 156 percent cost overrun.
- The Olympics doesn’t necessarily net more tourism dollars for the host city, the report says. Past host cities have seen locals and the normal crop of tourists scared away during the Games. During the London 2012 Olympics, some theater shows closed over insufficient ticket sales and some museums and zoo revenues were significantly down.
- Humanitarian costs need to be considered too: SAJE says host cities often seek to clear people experiencing homelessness away from Olympics areas. For example, Atlanta trucked them out of town, criminalized loitering and created hostile architecture to prevent sleeping on benches, per the report. (L.A. police also cleared unhoused people from downtown areas during the 1984 Olympics.)
Could L.A. Actually Cancel?
- Once a city signs a contract to host the Olympics, it doesn’t have a right to cancel. And there’s no precedent for canceling or relocating an Olympics that’s just two years away, SAJE acknowledges.
- According to the host city contract, a city can ask the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to cancel on its behalf if hosting would cause “undue” and unforeseen hardship. Under the contract, the IOC also can cancel or relocate the Games due to exceptional circumstances — like war, boycott or danger to participants’ health or safety — or if the host city fails to meet its contractual commitments.
- Canceling could be costly, too: L.A. could be sued for losses and breach of contract.
- But the International Olympic Committee might be willing to renegotiate to make the Olympics smaller and less expensive, in order to forestall cancellation, SAJE suggests.
