Dodger Stadium Among Latest LA28 Venue Announcements

Dodger Stadium, as expected, will host the Olympic baseball competition as the latest set of venues for the 2028 Olympic Summer Games in Los Angeles were announced on Tuesday.

Dodger Stadium hosted the 1984 Games when baseball was a demonstration sport and has been the host site of 11 World Series and the final rounds of the 2017 World Baseball Classic in which the U.S. claimed gold.

Dodger Stadium, which broke ground in 1959 and opened on April 10, 1962, has been home to the Los Angeles Dodgers for the past 63 seasons. The venue boasts a seating capacity of 56,000 and averaged 48,000 fans per game during the 1984 Games, won by Japan over the U.S. in the gold medal game. Current WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari was the home plate umpire in the game.

“We are thrilled to return to Dodger Stadium for the Olympic Games,” Fraccari said. “This iconic venue is the perfect stage to showcase the very best of our sport to millions of fans around the world. When the world’s top international baseball teams take to the field in 2028, the atmosphere will be even more electric than in 1984.”

Among the other announcements is the confirmation of volleyball in Anaheim, which was initially proposed by LA28. The home of the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks, the city has hosted FIVB Nations League events in the past but will be hosting an Olympic event in the venue for the first time; the Anaheim Arena was home for wrestling in the 1984 Games.

Squash will make its Olympic debut on the Universal Studios Lot where movies like To Kill a Mockingbird and Back to The Future, Courthouse Square have been filmed.  T20 Cricket, which was added to the 2028 Olympic sport program in 2023, will make its debut at the Fairgrounds in Pomona in a temporary, purpose-built structure. Surfing will be held at Trestles Beach in San Clemente while Long Beach will showcase Beach Volleyball at Alamitos Beach.

The Olympic footprint will extend north to the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area, which will host Olympic events for the first time in history in 2028, where 3×3 Basketball and Modern Pentathlon will officially join BMX Freestyle, BMX Racing, Skateboarding Park and Skateboarding Street.

“We are excited that the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area will be the stage for 3×3 basketball at the Olympic Games LA28,” said FIBA 3×3 Managing Director Alex Sanchez. “Los Angeles is one of the world’s most iconic basketball cities and has a thriving 3×3 culture. The 2028 Olympic Games will therefore be an incredibly special milestone for our sport. No doubt, the world’s fastest-growing urban sport will leave a lasting legacy for future generations in the San Fernando Valley.”

Triathlon is relocating from Long Beach and will instead be in Venice Beach, which will host the official starting locations for the Marathon and Cycling Road courses. The courses and finishes for both the Marathon and Cycling Road will be confirmed and announced at a later date.

Rhythmic Gymnastics will take center stage at the USC Sports Center and boxing, recently reinstated to the 2028 sport program by the IOC last month, will hold preliminary matches in the Peacock Theater in Downtown Los Angeles and the final stages in the Arena in Downtown Los Angeles.

Sport Climbing will take place in the Convention Center Lot in Long Beach and Target Shooting will take place in a temporary indoor range at the Convention Center in Long Beach. Shotgun Shooting events will be held at the Shotgun Center in South El Monte and Carson will have Archery added to its existing list of events. Archery will be held in the Stadium in Carson following the Rugby Sevens tournament.

One sport that remains to be announced for its venues is soccer, which in the past has been held at venues around the United States when Los Angeles hosted the Games in 1984 and when Atlanta hosted the 1996 Games.

“We’ve promised the world an incredible Olympic Games and today we’re proud to share the plan that will make it happen,” said LA28 Chief Executive Officer Reynold Hoover. “The 2028 Olympic venue plan invites communities from across the region to celebrate the Games coming to their backyard with the most exciting sports staged at some of the world’s top-tier existing stadiums and arenas, famous beaches and purpose-built temporary structures.”

The updated Paralympic venue plan will all be announced at a later date following review and approval by the International Paralympic Committee Governing Board.

Galway Downs Unhappy with Equestrian Move

LA28 announced that equestrian will be Santa Anita Park in Arcadia, which previously hosted the sport during the 1984 Olympics. Tuesday’s announcement comes after Galway Downs last week had acknowledged that Galway Downs Equestrian Center will not serve as the equestrian venue after Galway Downs was recommended and approved as the proposed venue by the Los Angeles City Council on March 28 when an updated venue plan was approved.

“We are extremely surprised that we were suddenly removed from consideration,” Galway Downs Owner Ken Smith said. “When we started this process more than four years ago, we understood the equestrian venue selection for LA28 would be a highly competitive, evolving process. Being selected as the proposed equestrian venue put Galway Downs and Temecula Valley on the world stage. We’re very proud of that, and we’re just getting started. Galway Downs will continue to host elite national and international competitions as well as additional sporting events.”

Opened in 1968, the 242-acre Galway Downs is home to equestrian competitions across multiple disciplines. It was slated to host Dressage, Jumping and Eventing competitions.

Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA) also released a statement: “I’m deeply disappointed to learn that Galway Downs in Temecula is reportedly no longer LA28’s proposed host site for equestrian events at the upcoming 2028 Olympic Games. This abrupt move appears arbitrary, unwarranted, and our community deserves a clear explanation of the process that led to this change. At this time, a satisfactory reason has yet to be offered.”

Galway Downs’ statement on Friday came less than a week after Santa Monica announced it would not be hosting the beach volleyball tournament for the 2028 Games as was originally planned.

“Galway Downs has showcased its Equestrian Center in Temecula Valley as the superior venue capable of hosting all Olympic equestrian games,” Temecula Mayor Brendan Kalfus said. “While the City is disheartened to learn of this abrupt change, particularly in light of LA28’s venue approval granted by the Los Angeles City Council just two weeks ago, we remain confident that Galway Downs will continue its legacy and mission uninterrupted as a vibrant, world-class Olympic-caliber equestrian presence in Temecula Valley.”

2028 Olympic Venue Announcements

Los Angeles
3×3 Basketball in the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area
Baseball in Dodger Stadium in Downtown Los Angeles
Boxing in the Peacock Theater in Downtown Los Angeles (preliminaries), Arena in Downtown Los Angeles (finals)
Cycling Road in Venice Beach (starting point)
Marathon in Venice Beach (starting point)
Modern Pentathlon in the Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area
Rhythmic Gymnastics in the USC Sports Center
Squash at the Universal Studios Lot
Triathlon in Venice Beach

Anaheim
Volleyball in the Arena in Anaheim

Arcadia
Equestrian at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia

Carson
Archery in the Stadium in Carson

Long Beach
Beach Volleyball at Alamitos Beach
Coastal Rowing at the Waterfront in Long Beach
Target Shooting in the Convention Center in Long Beach
Sport Climbing at the Convention Center Lot in Long Beach

Pomona
Cricket (T20) at the Fairgrounds in Pomona

San Clemente
Surfing at Trestles Beach

South El Monte
Shotgun Shooting at the Shotgun Center in South El Monte