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Olympics 2028 Los Angeles: the Canadian Fan's Complete Guide

Meera Patel
Written by: Meera Patel
Published date
Updated:
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8 min read

Olympics 2028 Los Angeles: the Canadian Fan's Complete Guide

Quick Answer: olympics 2028 los angeles

Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum's grand entrance, historic host venue for the Olympics 2028 Los Angeles games.
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum's grand entrance, historic host venue for the Olympics 2028 Los Angeles games.

card) can be set up before you arrive through the LA Metro app. Loading credit at home means stepping off the plane and heading straight to the K Line without hunting for a vending machine at LAX, which matters when you're moving between venues with event times in mind.

The spread across Inglewood, downtown, Long Beach, and Westwood means your ticket choices directly shape your daily travel pattern. Back-to-back events across different zones are workable, but LA traffic doesn't cooperate with tight schedules.

Knowing venues shapes your ticket strategy.

Quick Answer: The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics at a Glance

The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics run from 14 July to 30 July 2028, spanning 32 sports across multiple venues from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena la28.org. Tickets aren't on open sale. The only route in is through a ballot at la28.org, and interest registration is available now.

Landing at LAX that summer, Pacific heat greeting you before your bag reaches the carousel, 17 days of competition spread across one of North America's most sprawling cities.

Mobile data isn't optional here.

For Canadian travellers heading to Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics, US connectivity runs on AT&T and Verizon's 5G networks, both covering the city's major Olympic venues and metro transit corridors. HelloRoam's USA eSIM (a digital SIM profile activated by a QR code) starts at ~C$3.93 for 1 GB over 7 days on those networks.

Three actions worth taking now, not in 2027:

  • Register at la28.org for ticket ballot notification emails
  • Verify eSIM support on your phone under Settings > Cellular > Add eSIM
  • Book flights early, before Olympic-period demand drives prices up

The ticket ballot is the hardest part of the entire trip to lock down.

Where Will the 2028 Olympics Be Held in Los Angeles?

SoFi Stadium in Inglewood hosts the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, per la28.org. Find basketball at Crypto.com Arena in downtown, gymnastics, tennis, and handball at UCLA's Westwood campus, and sailing at Long Beach.

That spread is larger than most first-timers plan for.

Getting between venues is the practical puzzle. LA Metro's K Line (Crenshaw/LAX Line) runs from the LAX terminal area through Inglewood directly to SoFi Stadium, per LA Metro's route network.

Load a TAP card on your phone before landing and the stadium is a few dollars away by train. The traveller on the K Line for the opening ceremony is relaxed. The one stuck on Century Boulevard in a rideshare, watching the fare climb, is not.

The Purple Line extension to Westwood and UCLA opened in the 2025-2026 window, rewriting the transit calculation for campus events. Westwood was previously a cab-or-car trip from downtown; it's now a direct subway ride.

The venues also stretch in ways broadcast coverage doesn't show: Inglewood sits southwest of downtown, UCLA is northwest, Long Beach is south. Book accommodation near your ticket cluster, not around a vague sense of central LA.

Quick venue-to-metro reference: - SoFi Stadium (ceremonies, athletics): K Line, Downtown Inglewood station - Crypto.com Arena (basketball): A Line or J Line, 7th St/Metro Center - UCLA venues (gymnastics, tennis, handball): Purple Line, Westwood/VA Hospital station

The metro map shapes this trip more than the hotel map does.

How Much Will LA28 Tickets Cost for Canadian Fans?

Aerial view of the Rose Bowl stadium nestled among mountains, a key Olympics 2028 Los Angeles venue for Canadian fans.
Aerial view of the Rose Bowl stadium nestled among mountains, a key Olympics 2028 Los Angeles venue for Canadian fans.

Opening ceremony tickets are expected to range from roughly $500 to $3,000 USD. Group stage athletics events start around $50 USD. Every price at the olympics 2028 los angeles is listed in American dollars, which means Canadian fans layer the exchange rate on top of every figure they see la28.org.

LA28 hasn't published a full, itemised ticket price list yet. That's the frustrating reality of planning two years out. What's available is an expected range, not a confirmed breakdown.

What la28.org does confirm:

  • Opening ceremony seats are expected between $500 and $3,000 USD per ticket, placing them among the most expensive single-event entry points at any recent Summer Games.
  • Group stage athletics and early-round events start around $50 to $150 USD, the most budget-accessible tickets on the programme.
  • On Location hospitality packages (onlocationexp.com) start from roughly $3,000 USD per person. These bundles include confirmed event tickets, hotel accommodation, and venue transfers. Expensive, but they eliminate the ballot uncertainty for Canadian fans who need to commit to flights and hotels in advance.

The ballot runs through la28.org. No queuing. No early-bird advantage.

Registering early doesn't improve your odds.

That trips up a lot of people. When the ballot opens, every applicant in the same selection window has an equal shot. The only guaranteed way to miss tickets entirely is to skip the registration.

Beyond tickets, the sport programme itself is changing.

What Sport Is Being Removed from the 2028 Olympics?

Olympic rings monument against a clear blue sky, symbolizing the spirit of the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Olympic rings monument against a clear blue sky, symbolizing the spirit of the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

Boxing is out of the LA28 programme. The International Olympic Committee dropped the sport over governance concerns with the International Boxing Association, ending a run spanning more than a century of Summer Games appearances en.wikipedia.org. There's no reduced category or alternative format. Amateur boxing is simply not part of LA28.

It's a clean cut.

What takes its place is arguably more surprising than the exit itself.

LA28 adds five sports to the programme: cricket, flag football, lacrosse, squash, and baseball/softball la28.org. Two are outright Olympic firsts. Flag football makes its debut as a full Olympic discipline. Cricket returns after an absence stretching back to Paris 1900, its last Olympic appearance en.wikipedia.org.

Compare eSIM plans for United States — See 2026 pricing →

The flag football addition fits the venue. SoFi Stadium, where the opening and closing ceremonies are held, is an NFL venue in Inglewood. Staging flag football events there, in front of a crowd already familiar with American football rules, gives the sport the largest possible opening audience.

For Canadian fans, lacrosse's inclusion is the standout. Canada has a deep lacrosse tradition, and Canadian athletes compete at the highest international level in the sport. Demand for lacrosse event tickets among Canadian fans is likely to be significant. The full confirmed sport schedule is at la28.org.

Some Olympic traditionalists will grieve boxing's absence. Most first-time attendees probably won't.

Sport schedule confirmed: now tackle getting there.

Staying Connected in Los Angeles: eSIM and Data Guide for Canadian Visitors

Rogers, Bell, and Telus each charge roughly $14 CAD per day for US roaming. Run that across two weeks in Los Angeles and you're looking at close to $200 CAD in data costs alone, before a single ticket is scanned.

An eSIM cuts that sharply. HelloRoam's 5GB 30-day US plan runs ~C$13.71, on AT&T and Verizon networks. For a Canadian visitor with 10 to 14 days on the ground during the Games, 5GB covers navigation, transit apps, and messaging without much strain. Heavy map users or anyone video calling home daily should step up to the 10GB plan at ~C$22.48.

Key fact: HelloRoam's US eSIM plans run on AT&T and Verizon 5G networks, with a 5GB 30-day option at ~C$13.71.

The Dual-SIM Setup

Modern iPhones and most Android flagships support dual SIM: one physical card, one eSIM (a digital SIM profile installed by scanning a QR code). Keep your Rogers, Bell, or Telus number active for incoming calls and notifications. Route all data through the eSIM. Your Canadian plan sees none of the US data bill.

Setup takes roughly five minutes at home before departure. Scan the QR code while connected to Wi-Fi, the profile installs automatically, and you toggle it active before boarding. No airport kiosk. No queuing.

What Needs a Live Data Connection at LA28

Not everything at the Games demands constant data. These things genuinely do:

  • TAP card app (LA Metro): The transit card app requires a live data connection to load credit and check balances. The K Line connects the LAX area through Inglewood, past SoFi Stadium, and into downtown Los Angeles. That connection needs to be working the moment you clear customs.
  • Navigation between venues: Venues are spread across the city. Offline maps handle the basics, but live routing matters when road closures shift during the Games period.
  • Rideshare apps: Uber and Lyft are the practical fallback when metro lines fill up around major events.

Download offline maps for the Inglewood, downtown, and UCLA venue clusters before you enter stadium security. Signal degrades inside large venues when tens of thousands of people share the same towers simultaneously.

AT&T and T-Mobile networks cover all confirmed LA28 Olympic venues. HelloRoam routes through AT&T and Verizon, both of which provide solid 5G coverage across the key venue areas.

Activate your US eSIM before you leave Canada and the connection is live when the wheels touch down. With data sorted, flights and accommodation are the next piece to lock down.

Planning Your Trip from Canada to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics

The best fares from Canada to LAX tend to surface 18 to 24 months before a major sporting event. That window opens in late 2026.

Wait until closer to the Games and you'll pay a steep premium for the same seats.

Here's the sensible order of operations:

  1. Register at la28.org now. Ticket ballots open to registered fans before general public access. Free, takes two minutes, no good reason to delay.
  2. Book flights in late 2026. Both YYZ and YVR offer direct Air Canada service to LAX, cutting out connection layovers and keeping your arrival day intact. LAX is the only realistic international gateway to Los Angeles; Long Beach, Burbank, and Ontario airports are domestic only.
  3. Buy travel insurance with event cancellation cover when you book. Standard policies don't include event cancellations. If the ballot doesn't deliver or plans shift, that clause is the difference between a refund and a write-off.
  4. Apply for ESTA at least 90 days before departure. Canadians need an approved ESTA (the US visa-waiver pre-clearance authorization) before boarding any US-bound flight. Applications are online and usually processed fast, but approval isn't always same-day, so don't treat it as a same-week task.
  5. Book refundable accommodation once tickets are confirmed. Prices near SoFi Stadium and downtown LA will climb as 2028 approaches. A refundable rate lets you hold a room and adjust if something better opens up.

The ESTA step catches travellers off guard more often than it should. An approved ESTA is valid for two years and covers multiple entries, so applying well before 2028 creates a useful buffer rather than just a checkbox. Sort it early. The rest is largely confirmations.

One key hosting question most Canadians still ask.

Who Is Hosting the 2026 and 2028 Olympics?

Los Angeles hosts the 2028 Summer Olympics. Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo in northern Italy take the 2026 Winter Games, and Brisbane holds the 2032 Summer Games en.wikipedia.org.

GamesWinter Olympics
Year2026
HostMilan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy
GamesSummer Olympics
Year2028
HostLos Angeles, California, USA
GamesSummer Olympics
Year2032
HostBrisbane, Australia

LA isn't approaching this as a first-time host. The city ran the Summer Games in 1932 and again in 1984, so the venue infrastructure is established rather than purpose-built for a single event en.wikipedia.org. The 1984 edition avoided the cost overruns that strained other host cities by relying on existing facilities rather than commissioning large-scale new builds. LA28 carries the same philosophy into 2028 la28.org.

LA28 is the official organising committee managing all preparations for the Los Angeles Games: venue coordination, transport planning, ticketing, and communications la28.org. All official updates on tickets, schedules, and event programmes flow through LA28, which makes registering with them the first practical step for any serious attendee.

For Canadian fans, the sequence is clear. The 2026 Winter Games open in Milan in February 2026. The 2028 Summer Games open in Los Angeles on 14 July 2028 la28.org. The hosting question is settled. Planning starts now.

Reviewed by HelloRoam's editorial team. Last updated: 30 June 2026.

Get Connected Before You Go

Meera Patel, Travel Writer at HelloRoam
Meera Patel is a travel writer at HelloRoam covering mobile data and travel connectivity for international visitors. She writes practical eSIM setup guides for visitors arriving at major airports and covers data plans for scenic drives, tourist routes, and urban stays. Meera's guides serve families, solo travelers, and business visitors who all need reliable internet on the road.

Frequently Asked Questions

Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy host the 2026 Winter Olympics. Los Angeles, California hosts the 2028 Summer Olympics. Brisbane, Australia is confirmed for the 2032 Summer Games.

The 2028 Summer Olympics will be held in Los Angeles, California, USA. The 2032 Summer Olympics are scheduled for Brisbane, Australia.

Opening ceremony tickets are expected to range from $500 to $3,000 USD. Group stage athletics and early-round events start around $50 USD. All prices are listed in US dollars, adding an exchange rate for Canadian buyers.

Boxing is being removed from the LA28 programme. The International Olympic Committee dropped it over governance concerns with the International Boxing Association, ending more than a century of Summer Games appearances.

The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics run from 14 July to 30 July 2028, spanning 17 days of competition across multiple venues throughout the city.

LA28 adds cricket, flag football, lacrosse, squash, and baseball/softball. Flag football makes its Olympic debut, and cricket returns for the first time since Paris 1900.

Key venues include SoFi Stadium in Inglewood for ceremonies, Crypto.com Arena downtown for basketball, UCLA's Westwood campus for gymnastics and tennis, and Long Beach for sailing.

Tickets are available only through a ballot at la28.org. Registration is free, takes about two minutes, and is required before ballots open. Registering early does not improve your odds, but not registering means missing out entirely.

Canadian travelers can use a US eSIM plan instead of paying roughly $14 CAD per day in carrier roaming fees. A 5GB 30-day US eSIM plan on AT&T and Verizon 5G networks costs around C$13-14, covering navigation, transit apps, and messaging.

Major Canadian carriers charge roughly $14 CAD per day for US roaming. Over a 14-day Olympic trip, that totals nearly $200 CAD in data costs alone, compared to much lower eSIM rates.

A dual-SIM setup lets you keep your Canadian number active on your physical SIM while routing all data through a US eSIM. Setup takes about five minutes at home by scanning a QR code before departure.

LA Metro's K Line runs from the LAX terminal area through Inglewood directly to SoFi Stadium. Loading a TAP card before departure lets you board the train immediately upon arrival without queuing at a vending machine.

Yes, Canadians need an approved ESTA (US visa-waiver pre-clearance) before boarding any US-bound flight. Apply at least 90 days before departure, as approval is not always same-day. An approved ESTA is valid for two years.

The best fares from Canada to LAX typically appear 18 to 24 months before major sporting events, meaning late 2026. Waiting closer to the Games will mean significantly higher airfare due to Olympic demand.

Yes, Los Angeles previously hosted the Summer Games in 1932 and 1984. LA28 follows the 1984 approach of using existing venues rather than building new facilities, which helped that edition avoid major cost overruns.

On Location packages start from roughly $3,000 USD per person and bundle confirmed event tickets, hotel accommodation, and venue transfers. They eliminate ballot uncertainty for fans who need to commit to flights in advance.

Sources

  1. la28.org la28.org
  2. en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org (2028)
  3. 2028 OLYMPIC & PARALYMPIC GAMES PLAN la28.org

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