Southern California residents hoping to attend the 2028 Olympic Games will start receiving notifications this Thursday and Friday for the second ticket drop. For those who registered by the July 22 deadline, the ticket sale window for selected participants runs from August 10 to 20.
This follows a highly competitive initial ticket release in April, which left many hopeful attendees struggling to find tickets for popular events or facing eye-popping prices. More than 12 million people have registered so far, indicating stiff competition for coveted seats.
Early reports from those with access to Drop 2 suggest inventory for prime events remains low. While LA28 has promised refreshed inventory across all sports for this drop, all tickets are released at the very beginning of the 11-day window, not gradually. One early attendee reported seeing no tickets available for artistic gymnastics and only a single $1,600 ticket for the opening ceremony momentarily flicker in and out of availability. Tickets for preliminary rounds of sports like badminton, baseball, field hockey, and volleyball were more plentiful.
For those who receive an access window, speed is crucial. When your assigned time slot opens, it's advised to go directly to the events of most interest and add tickets to your cart immediately. Once added, tickets are held for 30 minutes, allowing time to add more selections or adjust your choices. There is a general 12-ticket limit per account across all drops, with an additional 12-ticket allotment specifically for soccer matches.
To navigate the hundreds of available sessions efficiently, research event-specific five-digit session codes beforehand. These codes can be typed into the ticketing page's search bar to go directly to the desired event, saving precious time. While LA28 provides an official PDF, some found fan-made spreadsheets, which often listed prices, more helpful during the first drop.
Ticket pricing for the Games is based on categories rather than individual seat selection, and prices vary significantly. For instance, tickets for the men's gold medal basketball game start just over $100 but can quickly jump into the thousands. Field-level seats for the opening ceremony could exceed $5,000. Finals consistently cost more than preliminary rounds.
LA28 has stated there will be one million $28 tickets available across the Games and that about half of all tickets will be under $200. However, these more affordable options are often limited and were among the first to sell out. During the initial local presale, 95% of all sub-$100 tickets, including half a million $28 tickets, were claimed within five days. For the closing ceremony, the only $28 tickets were for a small section at the top of the Coliseum with a partially obstructed view. An early time slot on the second day of the April presale, for example, still meant no tickets were available for the opening ceremony or women's gymnastics final. However, preliminary rounds for events like beach volleyball did see $28 seats available in upper tiers even days into the first drop.
