LA28

Ticket buyer: Alec Mackie of Los Angeles

Events: Men’s baseball gold medal finals, women’s basketball gold medal finals, men’s soccer gold medal finals, swimming preliminary and tennis quarter final mixed doubles

Thoughts: ”My uncle made a spreadsheet. The tickets are for me, my uncle, friends and I’m hoping to take my nephew as well. I was 10 years old at the 1984 Olympics and got to go to gymnastics, swimming and closing ceremonies, and my nephew will be 10 in 2028. I know L.A. is going to have an amazing Olympics, we are Los Angeles! Ten million creative, beautiful people, always dreaming and we know how to wow people. I can’t wait and hopefully traffic is smooth, a glamorous sequel to ’84.”

Thousand-dollar tickets and hundreds of dollars in fees shocked some hopeful Olympic fans this month, but they did not keep LA28 from boasting strong sales in the committee’s first ticket drop.

LA28 announced Thursday that it sold more than 4 million Olympic tickets during the first ticket drop. The private organizing committee will have a second ticket drop in August with “refreshed inventory across all Olympic sports at a range of price points.”

But after the popularity of the first purchasing period, many of the lower-priced tickets have already been scooped up.

LA28 said roughly half of the total 1 million $28 tickets were sold during the locals presale, which was limited to people living near venue cities in Southern California and Oklahoma City.

The average price per Olympic ticket is less than $200, which includes a mandatory 24% service fee, and LA28 said about 75% of all tickets, including final events, will be under $400. The premier seats at high-demand events command more than $1,000 per ticket, but the highest priced categories make up about 5% of the total ticket inventory.

Artistic gymnastics sold out the quickest in Drop 1. Four Olympic sports — flag football, lacrosse, softball and squash — sold all their available inventory for the first drop. After five days of local presale, global ticket sales opened and drew fans from 85 countries and all 50 states and U.S. territories. The largest international sales came from the United Kingdom, Canada, Mexico and Japan.

For the first female-majority Olympic Games, LA28 reported that women’s Olympic sessions outsold men’s 93% to 88% during the first drop.

“The response to our initial on-sale was nothing short of historic. Fans from near and far have spoken: the world wants to be part of the LA28 Games,” LA28 chief executive officer Reynold Hoover said in a statement. “The success of Drop 1 is about more than momentum — it reflects LA28’s commitment to delivering a fiscally responsible Games that create a lasting legacy for Los Angeles and its communities.”

Drop 2, which will begin in August, will have additional tickets across all Olympic sports, including those that may have sold out during the first purchasing windows. The registration period for Drop 2 opened Thursday at tickets.la28.org and will continue until July 22. Fans who registered for the first drop of tickets but did not receive a time slot and fans who did not buy their maximum 12 general ticket allotment will automatically be entered into the random lottery Drop 2. The new registration period is only required for anybody who did not sign up for the initial drop.

Fans are still limited to 12 Olympic tickets and up to 12 soccer tickets that don’t count toward the general maximum. There is a four ticket per ceremony limit for the opening and closing ceremony that count toward the 12-ticket maximum, which is cumulative across all LA28 presales and ticket drops.

LA28 will have multiple ticket drops with assigned purchasing time slots before ticket sales move to a first-come, first-served format closer to the Games, which open on July 14, 2028. LA28 began its ticketing process earlier than most other Olympic Games with tickets going on sale more than two years in advance of the opening ceremony. The early timeline has created excitement for the first Summer Olympics in the United States since Atlanta 1996, but also prompted concerns about scheduling. Fans clamored for tickets with little information about which teams or athletes would be competing in most sessions.

Tickets are not refundable, but fans can opt for verified resale when LA28 launches its official resale system in 2027. AXS and Eventim is the official secondary ticket marketplace of the LA28 Games and Ticketmaster and Sports Illustrated Tickets have also signed on as additional verified resale platforms.

LA28 will have 14 million tickets available for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, which would eclipse the record of 12 million tickets sold for the Paris Games. Paris 2024 sold an about 9.5 million tickets for the Olympics, but used a different ticket system than LA28. For Paris, 3.5 million tickets were sold during the first phase, during which fans were required to buy tickets to at least three different sports instead of the option for single-event tickets available during LA28’s Drop 1 process.

Tickets for the 2028 Paralympics, which will be the first in L.A.’s history, will go on sale in 2027. Ticket sales and hospitality are expected to cover about $2.5 billion of LA28’s expected $7.1 billion budget for the first Games in L.A. in more than 40 years.

Fans are frustrated with LA28. City Council members are battling over billions of dollars and overdue contracts. But in front of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee board of directors, LA28 found support for the private organizing committee’s progress with a little more than two years remaining before the Games open in L.A.

Despite pushback from locals, LA28 leadership, including chief executive officer Reynold Hoover and chief executive officer responsible for revenue John Slusher, spoke to the USOPC on Wednesday about the ticket sale process, explained the superbloom-inspired look of the Games and celebrated the committee’s recent commercial success that surpassed more than $2 billion in sponsorship agreements.

“We were quite encouraged to hear from them,” USOPC chair Gene Sykes said during a conference call Wednesday after a board of directors meeting, “and quite confident in the direction of LA28 from an operational standpoint.”

The private group responsible for bringing the Games back to L.A. for the first time in four decades opened ticket sales this month after attracting a record number of interested fans. The first week of sales — reserved for locals in Southern California and Oklahoma City near competition venues — “significantly exceeded first-week sales for any previous Olympic Games,” LA28 said in a statement.

But many fans were shocked to see opening ceremony tickets topping $5,000. They complained about a shortage of options for the most in-demand sports and were surprised to see a 24% service fee. Global sales opened on April 9 and many of the problems, including website glitches and unavailable tickets, persisted.

The USOPC board discussed the fee with LA28, and recognized that it is “part of a framework that is a framework they accept,” Sykes said, “as opposed to challenging it or trying to make it something different.”

The fee is included in the listed price of the tickets, which start at $28. There will be 1 million tickets sold at $28 each, and nearly half of the Olympic tickets are under $200. More than 75% are under $400 and about 5% of tickets are more than $1,000.

“I know they’re thinking very, very seriously about how to manage the ticket activity so that it satisfies everybody,” Sykes said.

LA28 will have 14 million tickets available between the Olympics and Paralympics, which would break Paris 2024’s record of 12 million tickets sold. The current ticket drop, which is open to fans worldwide, ends April 19. LA28 expects to have a second drop this year, but has not released specific details about when.

Ticket headaches have added to a controversial run-up to the Games for LA28, which also faced backlash after chairman Casey Wasserman was mentioned in the Epstein files released in February. The LA28 executive committee backed Wasserman after a review with the assistance of outside counsel. Wasserman announced that month he would sell his talent agency but planned to continue working with LA28.

When asked Wednesday what the USOPC board believed Wasserman’s role with LA28 should be moving forward, Sykes said the organizations have had discussions and are monitoring the “impact on our community.” But it is ultimately the LA28 board’s decision to select its chair. Wasserman was appointed by former Mayor Eric Garcetti to lead the Olympic effort in 2014.

“Separate from the LA28 board … LA28’s leadership Reynold Hoover and John Slusher, but many other people among the hundreds of people who work for LA28 have continued to assemble a very strong team,” Sykes said, “and show measurable progress on all the fundamental things that they need to do to make the Games a very, very strong Games, and have a remarkable experience. We remain very confident that that progress is both evident and very solid and that [it] will involve the planning with partners, athlete engagement, public support and corporate interest, all of which remain very strong, and I think, very encouraging. The ongoing committee is executing effectively, and we’re very happy to work with them.”

You ask. We answer. Or at least we’re going to try.

The Times asked readers for their burning questions regarding the Olympics, and it’s the ticketing process that’s bringing the most heat. Locals in Southern California and Oklahoma City endured the presale headaches and sticker shock before the global audience got their shot at securing tickets this week. But with more than two years remaining until the Games open, expect that there will be more questions.

Here is what Times readers wanted to know:

Why are tickets so expensive?

A price tag of $5,000 to watch the opening ceremony or $2,500 for women’s artistic gymnastics finals shocked hopeful fans on the first day of ticket sales. But it’s not 1984 anymore.

Ticket sales and hospitality are expected to cover about $2.5 billion of the total $7.1 budget. LA28 will have 14 million tickets available across the Olympics and Paralympics, so taken in total, the average ticket for the Games would have to be roughly $179 to reach the budget estimate. Paralympic tickets, which will go on sale in 2027, are expected to be less expensive than Olympic tickets. LA28 said the average Olympic ticket — inclusive of the 24% fee — is less than $200. The math is mathing.

LA28 did not release a complete price list before tickets went on sale, likely fueling some of the sticker shock after fans just heard about the promise of $28 tickets. And a 24% fee raised additional eyebrows.

The fees “align with standard industry practices for ticketing live events in the U.S.,” LA28 said in a statement and cover the costs of secure processing and delivering tickets.

Are there still $28 tickets available?

Yes. LA28 chief executive officer Reynold Hoover said at a recent press event that there are $28 tickets that have not yet been released.

But expect the tickets to go quickly whenever they are available.

There are roughly 1 million $28 tickets total. Divide those tickets to ensure they can be distributed over a number of drops and then divide each drop’s $28 tickets across multiple sports. It’s quickly resembling a small number of needles in a big haystack.

The 1 million $28 tickets are spread across every sport, but not every session. So don’t expect $28 tickets for finals or knock out rounds to the most in-demand sports including women’s artistic gymnastics, basketball, swimming or track and field to be sold at all. Cross your fingers, look for qualifying rounds, especially sports that have a lot of early pool matches such as 3×3 basketball or field hockey, and be open to exploring a new sport you’ve never heard of. Handball is actually a lot of fun to watch.

How many tickets are available in each drop?

This is a question everyone wants to know. And trust me, we’ve asked. LA28 declined in multiple settings to release specific numbers. The lack of information likely contributed to much of the confusion about what to expect when fans logged into the portal for the first time, and it makes it difficult to project what the ticket distribution will look like in future drops.

I had a time slot but didn’t buy my full allotment of tickets. What now?

If you didn’t buy the maximum 12 tickets allowed, you’ll automatically be entered for the next ticket draw later this year. LA28 has not released any additional details about when exactly that next opportunity will be, but it will have the same steps as the first one: a period of open, free registration, a random lottery and assigned time slots during which fans can log in and purchase tickets.

Fans will be automatically rolled over into future lotteries until they’ve reached the maximum 12 general tickets. So you don’t have to do anything extra if you’ve already registered for the first drop. But if you’ve bought your 12 general tickets and not the additional 12 soccer tickets, you won’t be entered into the next draw.

I didn’t register for the presale/first drop. Can I still get a chance to buy tickets?

Don’t panic. You can register next time. The next drop, which will come later this year, will have the same registration period, lottery, time slot pattern, but there will not a presale period. Each lottery is random, so whether you are a first-drop rollover, a new registrant on the first day or someone who signs up on the last day, you all have the same chance to get a time slot.

There will be multiple time slot-based ticket drops before tickets move to a complete first-come, first-served sale.

How can groups get access to the tickets available through the donation program?

Last November, LA28 launched a donation program to help fund tickets for local organizations. The Rams were the first contributors to the program, pledging $5 million to the campaign. But LA28 has not released additional information yet about how the tickets will be handled or distributed in the future.

Will I be able to transfer tickets to friends/family?

Yes. Digital tickets for recent Olympics have been distributed through an app and when they hit your account, you can send them to friends and family using their email addresses/Olympic account information. Just be prepared to download yet another app on your phone.

Why are some events in Oklahoma?

The softball tournament will be in Oklahoma City’s Devon Park, which hosts the Women’s College World Series every year, and canoe slalom will take place at Riversport OKC, the official U.S. Olympic and Paralympic training center for rowing and canoe/kayak.

These Games were intended to use existing infrastructure instead of building new venues, which greatly cuts down on costs. Hosting the canoe slalom events near L.A. would have required an expensive temporary build. It’s true that Southern California has many great college softball teams with existing facilities, but it would be difficult to prepare to a scale suitable for Olympic athletes, stakeholders, media and fans. I’ve covered many softball games at UCLA. The fan capacity is less than 1,500 and there’s room for about seven people in the press box. Eight if you scrunch. You can’t build temporary stands there; the outfield touches Sunset Boulevard.

In Tokyo, the last time baseball and softball were at the Olympics, the sports shared a venue. But LA28 organizers heard feedback from softball athletes saying that converting a baseball stadium into a softball venue compromised some of the Games experience. Moving the softball and canoe slalom events outside of Southern California is a trade off though. Those athletes will not be able to have some of the same Olympic experiences as others, but organizers were mindful to make the competition schedule to ensure that athletes could still attend either the opening or closing ceremonies despite competing far away.

Every Olympics wrestles with finding the perfect venue, and for the L.A. Games, which have more sports and more athletes than any Olympics in history, that calculus is harder than most. There are no perfect solutions.

The Times will continue answering reader questions leading up to the Olympics. Use the form below to submit your questions and check back later for more responses.