In a groundbreaking shift from tradition, the Los Angeles Organizing Committee for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games has announced that it will sell naming rights to various venues a move never before seen in Olympic history. The initiative aims to create a new revenue stream for the Summer Games, which are now less than three years away.
The LA28 committee has already finalized two major deals: Honda will hold naming rights for the arena hosting Olympic volleyball in Anaheim, and Comcast will secure temporary naming rights for the squash venue. These agreements mark a significant departure from the International Olympic Committee’s long-standing rule against brand names appearing on Olympic venues during the Games.
LA28 Chairperson and President Casey Wasserman emphasized the historic nature of the decision in a press release, stating:
“From the moment we submitted our bid, LA28 committed to reimagining what’s possible for the Games. Today’s historic announcement delivers on that promise, creating the first-ever venue naming rights program in Olympic and Paralympic history while advancing LA28’s mission of a fully privately funded and no-new-build Games. These groundbreaking partnerships with Comcast and Honda, along with additional partners to come, will not only generate critical revenue for LA28 but will introduce a new commercial model to benefit the entire Movement. We’re grateful to the IOC for making this transformation possible.”
The naming rights program represents a wider strategy to ensure that the 2028 Games will be entirely funded through private investments rather than public money. The LA28 team has committed to avoiding new construction wherever possible, relying instead on existing venues and temporary facilities a move that also aligns with sustainability goals.
The International Olympic Committee’s willingness to allow corporate naming rights signals a potential shift in how future Games could be financed. Historically, branding during the Olympics has been tightly controlled, with arenas and stadiums temporarily stripped of commercial signage. The LA28 approach could pave the way for similar revenue strategies in other host cities, especially as the costs of staging the Games continue to rise.
The deals with Honda and Comcast are expected to be the first of several, with the organizing committee already in talks with other major companies. The exact financial details of the agreements have not been disclosed, but analysts expect them to generate tens of millions in funding.
The 2028 Summer Olympics will be the third time Los Angeles has hosted the Games, following the successful editions in 1932 and 1984. It will also mark the first Summer Games in the United States since Atlanta in 1996. Over the course of 17 days, the city will welcome thousands of athletes and para-athletes from around the globe to compete across dozens of sports.
The Games will open on Friday, July 14, 2028, and close on Sunday, July 30, 2028. Coverage will be broadcast on NBC and other NBCUniversal networks, with streaming available on Peacock.
As LA prepares to host the world once again, this unprecedented naming rights program could become one of the defining features of the 2028 Games both for its financial impact and for its role in reshaping the Olympic business model for decades to come.