Sports in Los Angeles

Angels

Dodgers

Galaxy

Lakers Sparks Clippers Kings

Ducks

LAFC/Angel City

Rams/Chargers

Location of major league teams in Greater Los Angeles area

Los Angeles is home to major league sports teams from all five major leagues — MLB, MLS, the NBA, the NFL, and the NHL — as well as one current team in the WNBA and one future team in the NWSL, both top-level women's leagues. The following are the major professional teams in the Los Angeles area, with the future NWSL team highlighted in yellow.

Dodger Stadium

The Los Angeles area is one of four metropolitan areas to host two Major League Baseball teams—the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League and the Los Angeles Angels in the American League.

Angel Stadium has served as the home of the Los Angeles Angels since its opening in 1966

The Dodgers were founded in Brooklyn, New York in 1883; they officially adopted the name Dodgers in 1932. The team moved to Los Angeles before the 1958 season and played four consecutive seasons at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before they moved to their current home stadium, Dodger Stadium, in 1962. The Dodgers are one of the most valuable franchises in MLB. They have won seven World Series championships and 24 National League pennants.[5] Eleven NL MVP award winners have played for the Dodgers, winning a total of thirteen MVP Awards; eight Cy Young Award winners have also pitched for the Dodgers, winning a total of twelve Cy Young Awards. The team has even had eighteen Rookie of the Year Award winners, twice as many as the next closest team, including four consecutive from 1979 to 1982 and five consecutive from 1992 to 1996.[6] Los Angeles and the Dodgers are set to host the MLB All-Star Game in the summer of 2022.[2]

The Los Angeles Angels were established as one of the league's first two expansion teams in 1961 by Gene Autry. The Los Angeles Angels played their home games at Los Angeles Wrigley Field and moved in 1962 to newly built Dodger Stadium, which the Angels referred to as Chavez Ravine, where they were tenants of the Dodgers through 1965. In 1966, they moved to current home, Angel Stadium in Anaheim. In 2002, the Angels won their first and only American League pennant and World Series when they defeated the San Francisco Giants 4–3.[5] The Angels have had many award winners including five AL MVP award winners by three players, two Cy Young Award winners and three Rookie of the Year Award winners.[7]

Staples Center is the current home to the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Sparks.

Los Angeles boasts two NBA teams, the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers. Both share the Staples Center. The Lakers are one of the most valuable franchises in the NBA and have gained a considerable fanbase over the years. They have the most titles of all Los Angeles franchises, having gained 12 titles in LA and 17 overall, the joint most in the NBA along with the Boston Celtics. The LA Lakers were founded as the Minneapolis Lakers, having moved to Southern California in 1960.

The LA Clippers were founded as the Buffalo Braves in 1970; in 1978, the team moved to San Diego and changed the nickname to Clippers; the team re-located from San Diego in 1984. They were one of three expansion teams to join the NBA that year, along with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Portland Trail Blazers. The Braves saw some success and reached the playoffs three times, led by league Most Valuable Player (MVP) Bob McAdoo. Conflicts with the Canisius Golden Griffins over the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium and the sale of the franchise led to them relocating from Buffalo, New York, to San Diego, California.

When he died in 2013, Lakers owner Jerry Buss also owned the city's WNBA franchise, the Los Angeles Sparks, which also plays at Staples Center. His family still owns the Lakers, but has since sold the Sparks to Guggenheim Partners, the current owners of the Dodgers. One year later, longtime Clippers owner Donald Sterling was banned from the NBA after derogatory statements he made became public, and was subsequently forced to sell the team. The franchise was purchased by former Microsoft executive Steve Ballmer in August 2014. The Clippers plan to build a new arena in Inglewood, across from SoFi Stadium, by 2024 when their lease with Staples Center expires.

Los Angeles Rams Text Logo

Los Angeles Chargers Text Logo

The region has two National Football League (NFL) teams: the Los Angeles Chargers and Los Angeles Rams. The Rams originally played in LA from 1946 to 1994, while the Chargers shared LA with them for only one season in 1960. Los Angeles did not have an NFL team in between the 1994 season and the 2016 season. Immediately after the 1994 season, the Los Angeles Rams moved from suburban Anaheim, California, to St. Louis, Missouri, and the Los Angeles Raiders returned to Oakland, California, after playing 13 years in the L.A. Memorial Coliseum (1982–1994) and winning Super Bowl XVIII. Between 1995 and 2016, there were multiple failed stadium proposals to bring back the NFL to Los Angeles and teams threatening to move in. On January 12, 2016, NFL owners voted 30–2 to allow the then St. Louis Rams to move back to Los Angeles and allow for the construction of the stadium proposed by Rams owner Stan Kroenke over a plan proposed by the Oakland Raiders and the San Diego Chargers. The Chargers would still follow through with a move to Los Angeles a year later in 2017.[8][9] The Rams and Chargers play their home games at the 70,240-seat SoFi Stadium in Inglewood. 2017 marked the first time since 1960 that the Rams and Chargers shared the same market and the first time since 1994 that the market had two NFL teams.

Prior to the NFL, Los Angeles had multiple teams in the American Football League. The Los Angeles Wildcats, also called "Wilson Wildcats", were a traveling team for the first AFL in 1926. The Los Angeles Bulldogs were members of AFL II (1937) and a minor AFL (1939) before joining the Pacific Coast Professional Football League. The original Los Angeles Chargers were a charter member of AFL IV, becoming the San Diego Chargers in 1961. The Los Angeles Mustangs were members of the short-lived American Football League in 1944. From 1983 to 1985, the Los Angeles Express was a team in the United States Football League.

The region has two NHL teams — the Los Angeles Kings, which entered the league when it doubled in size in 1967, and the Anaheim Ducks, which joined in 1993 as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

Los Angeles Kings Full Team celebration

The Kings were founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent Cooke was awarded an NHL expansion franchise for Los Angeles on February 9, 1966, becoming one of the six teams that began play as part of the 1967 NHL expansion. Prior to the Kings arrival in the Los Angeles area, both the Pacific Coast Hockey League (PCHL) and the Western Hockey League (WHL) had several teams in California, including the PCHL's Los Angeles Monarchs of the 1930s and the WHL's Los Angeles Blades of the 1960s.[10] The Kings have won two Stanley Cup titles in 2012 and 2014.

Anaheim Ducks vs. Detroit Red Wings

The Ducks were founded in 1993 by The Walt Disney Company with an entrance fee of $50 million, half of which Disney paid to the Los Angeles Kings as compensation for sharing the Southern California NHL market.[11] On March 1, 1993, at the brand-new Anaheim Arena – located a short distance east of Disneyland and across the Orange Freeway from Angel Stadium – the team received its name, inspired by the 1992 Disney movie The Mighty Ducks.[12] As a result of the name adoption, the arena was named "The Pond",[12] and Disney subsequently made an animated series called Mighty Ducks, featuring a fictional Mighty Ducks of Anaheim team consisting of anthropomorphized ducks led by the Mighty Ducks' mascot, Wildwing.[13] The Ducks have won the Stanley Cup once in 2007.

Dignity Health Sports Park serves as home to the LA Galaxy

The Los Angeles area hosts two teams in Major League Soccer (MLS), the top flight of the men's sport in the United States: the LA Galaxy, a charter member of the league, and Los Angeles FC, which began play in 2018. The Galaxy have five MLS championships, more than any other MLS team as of 2019. The two teams play in "El Tráfico", the cross-town derby. Chivas USA was a member of Major League Soccer starting in 2005, but was shut down by the league in 2014.

Banc of California Stadium serves as home to LAFC

Before MLS was created, the Los Angeles Wolves of the United Soccer Association and the Los Angeles Toros of the National Professional Soccer League both had its first season in 1967. When both leagues merged to form the North American Soccer League, the Wolves remained in Los Angeles while the Toros relocated and became the San Diego Toros in 1968. When the first season ended, both teams folded. Later, the NASL returned a team to Los Angeles by establishing the Los Angeles Aztecs in 1974, but folded in 1981. The Los Angeles Lazers was owned by Jerry Buss and played in the MISL from 1982 to 1988. Buss again owned the Los Angeles United in the CISL but after one season (1993) sold the team. The United relocated to Anaheim and became Anaheim Splash playing from 1993 - 1997 then folding as well.

The area has one past and one future team in U.S. women's professional soccer. The Los Angeles Sol played one season (2009) of Women's Professional Soccer before folding. The area then went more than a decade without a top-flight team, either in WPS or in the current National Women's Soccer League, until an NWSL franchise was granted in 2020; the new side, since unveiled as Angel City FC, plans to start play in 2022.[14][15]

The sport of Mixed Martial Arts (in the U.S.) was first conceived of and created in the Los Angeles area. Rorion Gracie and Art Davie co-created the MMA promotion, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (the UFC), in 1993 out of Torrance, CA, under the War of the Worlds (W.O.W.) promotion company. The sport of Mixed Martial Arts slowly developed in its first decade. By the year 2005, the UFC had grown into a viable fight promotion company and the sport of MMA was on its way to becoming a mainstream sport in the U.S. and around the world.

In its relatively brief history, the sport of MMA has been well represented by fighters natives of Los Angeles and of California. From Frank Shamrock (Los Angeles) and Tito Oritz (Huntington Beach) in the early era of the sport, to Gilbert Melendez (Santa Ana) and Dan Henderson (Downey) throughout the mid-era of the sport, to Ronda Rousey (Riverside), Henry Cejudo (Los Angeles), Tony Ferguson (Oxnard) as of late.

LA Marathon walkers

The Los Angeles Marathon is a running event held in the spring of each calendar year. it is a foot race run over a 26.2 mi (42.2 km) course takes the runners from Dodger Stadium across the City of Los Angeles to a scenic finish just steps from the Santa Monica Pier. Ever since it was first launched after the summer Olympics 1984, it has been an attracted place for professional as well as amateurs athletics from all over the world with a capacity of 24000 making it the fifth-largest-running event in the United States.[16][17]

Huntington Beach US Surfing Open

The warm mediterranean climate as well as the miles of a scenic coastline with a variety of wave types from Malibu to the South Bay, Los Angeles is one of the favorite destinations to both amateurs and professional surfers across the world. Every summer of each year, Huntington Beach hosts the US Open of Surfing, the largest surfing competition in the world.[18] Many other surfing events including the International Surf Festival, Surfing Dog Contests, and Ventura's Surf Rodeo are held annually in several Los Angeles County beach cities.

Santa Monica Beach is believed to be the birthplace of Beach Volleyball

Santa Monica is believed to be the birthplace of beach volleyball in the early 1920's.[19] The weather, the vast sand area and the abundant permanent courts make Los Angeles one of the hotspots for beach volleyball. The first official Beach Volleyball World Championships was held in Los Angeles in from 10 to 13, 1997.[20] Beach Volleyball has been an official Olympic sport since 1996, and during the 2028 Olympics, beach volleyball will be played as an Olympic sport for the first time in the city of Los Angeles.[21] Additionally, many other local beach volleyball tournaments for players of all skill levels are held by multiple entities in various beaches across the Los Angeles metropolitan area. In 2017, CBVA, California Beach Volleyball Association, hosted nearly 1,000 tournaments at 23 beaches in 11 skill or age divisions. There are approximately 8,000 members from California and beyond.[22]

The Los Angeles Wildcats are an XFL team that began play in the league's inaugural 2020 season at Dignity Health Sports Park. The Los Angeles Xtreme were a member of the original XFL begun by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment and by NBC, a major television network in the United States. The team played its home games in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in the spring of 2001 and won the only championship in XFL history as the league folded after only one season.

Before the Arena Football League collapsed after the 2008 season, the league included the Los Angeles Cobras and the Los Angeles Avengers. The Cobras played one season at the Los Angeles Sports Arena before folding, mostly due to lack of attendance. The Avengers played their home games at the Staples Center until they folded as well. The AFL was revived in 2010 and returned to the Los Angeles area in 2014 with a new team, the Los Angeles Kiss. The team, owned by a group that included Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, members of the rock band KISS, played in Anaheim at the Honda Center until folding in 2016.[23]

The collegiate level East Los Angeles Dodgers and their rival the Orange County Angels in the Southern California Collegiate Baseball League.

The metropolitan area has two teams in the NBA G League, each are owned by one of the area's two NBA teams. The Agua Caliente Clippers play in Ontario, and the South Bay Lakers play in El Segundo.

Previously, the Anaheim Arsenal played in the region for three season from 2006 to 2009 before relocating to Springfield, Massachusetts.

The amateur sport of Gaelic football has been played in Los Angeles since the early 20th century. Los Angeles were national champions in 1959.[24]

The Cougars GFC[25] were founded in 2015 and play and train on the westside of Los Angeles. Primarily in Culver City/Santa Monica area. The Cougars season consists of attending tournaments in nearby San Diego, Colorado and the annual USGAA Nationals Championship. As of 2018, the Cougars membership consisted of approximately 50 members (male and female) with the club being 55% American, 45% Irish, some being complete beginners.

The Cougars also play in a 3-game series against their local rivals, The Wild Geese Gaelic Football Club, Inc. founded in 1978[26] who administers Gaelic football activities in nearby Orange County.

The Ontario Reign was an ECHL team from 2008 to 2015. After a team swap with Manchester, New Hampshire, the new Ontario Reign began play in the American Hockey League in 2015. In 1995 IHL Los Angeles Ice Dogs played one season 1995-1996 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena. Due to lack of attendance, moved to the Long Beach Arena for the 1996-1997 season and became the Long Beach Ice Dogs through 2007. the team played in three different 2nd-division professional hockey leagues during there time in Los Angeles/Long Beach; IHL 1995-2000, WCHL 2000-2003, & the ECHL 2003-2007.

Major League Lacrosse was represented with the Los Angeles Riptide from 2006 to 2008. The Anaheim Storm was a member of the indoor National Lacrosse League. They played at the Arrowhead Pond, now the Honda Center from 2004 to 2005. After the 2005 season, the Storm suspended operations due to low attendance

Los Angeles's rugby league team the Los Angeles Raiders RLFC are a developing team in the USA Rugby League, formed in 2011. They were aimed to compete as a full team in 2012.[27]

The Los Angeles area has had several amateur clubs. It is home to the Santa Monica Rugby Club, which competes in the Pacific Rugby Premiership and is a member of USA Rugby. The Los Angeles Rugby Club is the second oldest club in the Southern California Rugby Football Union.[28] The Club was founded in 1958 as the Universities Rugby Club. Founding members included Al Williams and Dick Hyland, members of the Gold Medal winning 1924 USA Olympic Rugby Team. Other rugby clubs include the LA Rebellion and the San Fernando Valley Rugby Club.

In 2021, the area will get its first professional club in the LA Giltinis, an expansion team in Major League Rugby.

The Los Angeles area also has multiple clubs in the USL Championship, the USL League Two, the United Premier Soccer League and the National Premier Soccer League scattered throughout the region: Orange County SC, Santa Ana Winds FC, LA Wolves FC, Moreno Valley FC, FC Golden State Force, Southern California Seahorses, Ventura County Fusion, City of Angels FC, Deportivo Coras USA, Orange County FC, Oxnard Guerreros FC, SoCal SC, and Temecula FC, to name some.

In addition, the Santa Clarita Blue Heat play in the UWS.

The Los Angeles Aviators are a member of the twenty-four team American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), a professional ultimate frisbee league spanning the United States and Canada. The Aviators are one of six teams currently competing in the Western Division, and play a fourteen-game regular season against the five other teams in the division: San Francisco FlameThrowers, San Diego Growlers, Seattle Cascades, and San Jose Spiders.

Los Angeles Astra is the new women's professional ultimate frisbee team, part of the Western Ultimate League. Their inaugural season in 2020 was canceled due to COVID-19.

Dodger Stadium host many entertainment events

Dodger Stadium is located in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, is the home field of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers. Opened on April 10, 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a cost of US$ 23 million. It is the oldest ballpark in MLB west of the Mississippi River, and third-oldest overall, after Fenway Park in Boston (1912) and Wrigley Field in Chicago (1914), and is the world's largest baseball stadium by seat capacity. Often referred to as a "pitcher's ballpark", the stadium has seen twelve no-hitters, two of which were perfect games.

The stadium hosted the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in 1980—and will host in 2022—as well as games of 10 World Series (1963, 1965, 1966, 1974, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1988, 2017, and 2018). It also hosted the semifinals and finals of the 2009 and 2017 World Baseball Classics. It also hosted exhibition baseball during the 1984 Summer Olympics. It will also host baseball and softball during the 2028 Summer Olympics. The stadium is also one of the greatest entertainment venues in the country, hosting special events that range from the Beatles to the Pope.[31]

Super Bowl I, Los Angeles Coliseum

Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is located in the Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The stadium serves as the home to the University of Southern California(USC) Trojans football team. It was also the temporary home of the Los Angeles Rams before the completion of SoFi Stadium in Inglewood July 2020. The facility had a permanent seating capacity of 93,607 for USC football and Rams games, making it the largest football stadium in the Pac-12 Conference and the NFL.[32] A 2018 renovation reduced capacity to 77,500. Conceived as a hallmark of civic pride, the Coliseum was commissioned in 1921 as a memorial to L.A. veterans of World War I. Completed in 1923, it will be the first stadium to have hosted the Summer Olympics three times: 1932, 1984, and 2028.[33] It was declared a National Historic Landmark on July 27, 1984, the day before the opening ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics. The Coliseum is jointly owned by the State of California, Los Angeles County, City of Los Angeles and is managed and operated by the Auxiliary Services Department of the University of Southern California.[34]

Rose Bowl Stadium satellite view

The Rose Bowl is a sport stadium, located in Pasadena, California, a northeast suburb of Los Angeles. Opened in October 1922, the stadium is recognized as a National Historic Landmark and a California Historic Civil Engineering landmark.[35] At a modern capacity of an all-seated configuration at 92,542, the Rose Bowl is the 15th-largest stadium in the world, the 11th-largest stadium in the United States, and the 10th largest NCAA stadium. the Rose Bowl is one of the most famous venues in sporting history,[36] Since 1982, it has also served as the home stadium of the UCLA Bruins football team. The stadium has also hosted five Super Bowl games, second most of any venue. The Rose Bowl is also a noted soccer venue, having hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup Final, 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup Final, and the 1984 Olympic Gold Medal Match, as well as numerous CONCACAF and United States Soccer Federation matches.[37]

Staples Center serves as home to the Los Angeles Kings, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Sparks

Staples Center is a multi-purpose arena in Downtown Los Angeles located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. The arena opened on October 17, 1999. The arena is home venue to the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL), the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Los Angeles Avengers of the Arena Football League (AFL) and the Los Angeles D-Fenders of the NBA D-League were also tenants; the Avengers were folded in 2009, and the D-Fenders moved to the Lakers' practice facility at the Toyota Sports Center in El Segundo, California for the 2011–12 season.[38] Staples Center is also host to over 250 events and nearly 4 million guests each year.[39] It is the only arena in the NBA shared by two teams, as well as one of only two North American professional sports venues to host two teams from the same league; MetLife Stadium, the home of the National Football League's New York Giants and New York Jets, is the other. Staples Center is the venue of the Grammy Awards ceremony and will host the basketball competition during the 2028 Summer Olympics.

SoFi Stadium serves as home to the Los Angeles Rams, Los Angeles Chargers, and LA Bowl

SoFi Stadium,[40] known as Los Angeles Stadium at Hollywood Park during its planning stages, is an ETFE roof–covered stadium and entertainment complex in the suburb of Inglewood. It is located at the former site of the Hollywood Park Racetrack, approximately three miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport, immediately southeast of The Forum.

The stadium is home to the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers of the National Football League (NFL). It is also scheduled to host Super Bowl LVI in February 2022 and the College Football Playoff National Championship in January 2023. During the 2028 Summer Olympics, the stadium is expected to host the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as soccer. Archery will be held on the grounds outside the stadium.

SoFi Stadium is the third stadium, and second to be in current use, since the 1970 AFL–NFL merger to be shared by two NFL teams (MetLife Stadium, in East Rutherford, New Jersey, is home to the New York Giants and New York Jets, as was its predecessor, Giants Stadium). It will be the fourth facility in the Los Angeles area to host multiple teams from the same league as Staples Center is home to both of the city's National Basketball Association (NBA) teams, the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers, Dignity Health Sports Park for a time hosted both the LA Galaxy and now-defunct Chivas USA of Major League Soccer, and Dodger Stadium hosted the Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angeles Angels from 1962 to 1965.

The stadium is a component of Hollywood Park, a master planned neighborhood in development on the site of the former Hollywood Park Racetrack. Hollywood Park Casino opened in October 2016, becoming the first establishment to open on the property.[41]

The Los Angeles Clippers are currently pursuing a new arena in Inglewood. Construction of the arena was delayed by several local protests and multiple lawsuits.[47][48] Government approvals were obtained in 2019,[49] and a lawsuit by local opponents was dismissed in that year.[50] The final obstacle to construction was cleared in 2020, when Clippers owner Steve Ballmer announced that he would purchase The Forum from The Madison Square Garden Company, ending a lawsuit that company had filed opposing the new facility. The Forum will be maintained as a live concert venue, and the new arena is now planned to open in 2024.[51]

The Opening Ceremony of the 1932 Summer Olympics

The 1932 Summer Olympics marked the first time Los Angeles staged the Olympic Games. It took place during the Great Depression and the games were reported to have produced a $1 million profit for the city.[52] Los Angeles was the only city to submit a bid for the 1932 edition of the Summer Olympics and was selected as the host city at the 21st IOC Session in Rome in 1923. That same year, Lake Placid hosted the 1932 Winter Olympics. The 1932 Summer Olympics marked the second time the US had hosted the Summer Olympics, with St. Louis hosting the 1904 Summer Olympics.

The United States won a total of 103 medals during the games, including 41 gold medals.[53]

Since the games were the tenth edition of the modern Olympic Games, Tenth Street was renamed Olympic Boulevard. Today Olympic Blvd is home to multiple attractions, such as the Grammy Museum.

The Opening Ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics

The 1984 Summer Olympics marked the second time Los Angeles had staged the Olympic Games. Much like the 1932 Summer Olympics, Los Angeles was the only city to submit a bid. Los Angeles was elected as the host city at the 80th IOC Session in Athens in 1978. The cost overruns of the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal and 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow discouraged cities to bid. However, Los Angeles depended on existing venues and infrastructure to host the games, in addition to being entirely privately funded, unlike Moscow and Montreal which were funded by their respective governments. The games produced a $200 million profit and are considered the most successful edition of the Olympic Games, as well as the model for the future editions.[54]

The Games were boycotted by fourteen Eastern Bloc countries, including the Soviet Union. Romania and Yugoslavia however, did not take part in the boycott and competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics. The United States and many allied nations had boycotted the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow four years earlier, protesting Soviet activity in Afghanistan.

The United States won a total of 174 medals, including 83 gold medals.[55]

Aerial view of the site of SoFi Stadium, the future home of the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers. It is expected to be completed for the 2020 NFL season. It will also host the main opening ceremony for the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Los Angeles will host the 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympic Games. This will mark the third time the Olympic Games are held in Los Angeles and the first time the city stages the Paralympic Games. The city will join London and Paris as the only cities to have hosted the Olympics three times.

Upon the USOC reaching a new revenue sharing agreement with the IOC, Los Angeles had been mentioned as a possible bidding city for the 2024 Summer Olympics.[56] In March 2013, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa sent a letter to the USOC confirming the city's interest in bidding for the 2024 Olympics.[57] On September 1, 2015 Los Angeles was chosen as the U.S. candidate to bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics after the USOC withdrew Boston's bid for the 2024 Olympics.[58] After Rome, Hamburg and Budapest withdrew their bids for the 2024 Olympics, only Los Angeles and Paris remained in the race. The IOC then decided to award both Paris and Los Angeles with future editions of the Olympic Games. In July 2017, an agreement was made which secured the 2024 Olympics for Paris and the 2028 Olympics for Los Angeles. Both cities were unanimously elected at the 131st IOC Session in Lima on September 13, 2017.

The 2028 Summer Paralympics will mark the first time the Paralympic Games are held in Los Angeles. Before Los Angeles hosted the 1984 Summer Olympics, the 1984 Summer Paralympics were held in New York City.

Aside from securing the right to host the 1932, 1984 and 2028 Summer Olympics, Los Angeles has made frequent Olympic bids in the past. Out of the ten bids which the USOC had submitted to the IOC over the years, seven previous official bids were unsuccessful. Los Angeles submitted bids for the 1924, 1928, 1948, 1952, 1956, 1976 and 1980 Summer Olympics, but lost to Paris, Amsterdam, London, Helsinki, Melbourne, Montreal and Moscow respectively.

Los Angeles had expressed interest to the USOC about bidding for the Olympics on multiple occasions, while failing to secure the USOC's support. Seventeen years after hosting the 1984 Olympics, the city became interested in bidding for the 2012 Summer Olympics, but the USOC chose to submit New York City's bid to the IOC. New York ultimately lost to London.[59] Los Angeles later bid to be the US candidate for the 2016 Summer Olympics, but the USOC decided to submit Chicago's bid to the IOC. Chicago ultimately lost to Rio de Janeiro. Following Chicago's defeat, Los Angeles again expressed interest in bidding for a future edition of the Olympic Games. In November 2011 a delegation from Los Angeles attended a seminar at the IOC headquarters for cities interested in bidding on future editions of the Olympic Games.[60] The USOC declined to submit a bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics, which was ultimately won by Tokyo. In February 2012, Los Angeles hosted the 5th IOC World Conference on Women and Sport which was attended by then-IOC President Jacques Rogge as well as IOC members.[61][62] At the conference Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and IOC Member Anita DeFrantz stated that the city would be interested in hosting the Olympic Games a third time.[63]

The Rose Bowl hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup Final (c. 2008)

In 1994 the United States hosted the FIFA World Cup. The Rose Bowl in Pasadena hosted eight matches, including the final where Brazil defeated Italy 3–2 on penalties.

Los Angeles is among the 23 candidate host cities, a list which will be shortened to 16, for the 2026 FIFA World Cup that will be held in three different countries, the United States, Canada and Mexico.[64] The Rose Bowl, along with SoFi Stadium are two venues in the LA area that could host matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The SoFi Stadium is also a possible candidate for the tournament final.[64]

Los Angeles was one of the host cities for the 1999 and 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup.

The Rose Bowl hosted four matches during the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup including the final where the United States defeated China 5–4 on penalties.

The United States hosted the FIFA Women's World Cup again in 2003 after China withdrew as hosts due to the SARS outbreak. The Home Depot Center, now known as Dignity Health Sports Park, in Carson was one of the venues that was used in the event. The venue hosted six games, including the final where Germany defeated Sweden 2–1 in sudden death.

The Rose Bowl hosted three matches during the 2016 Copa América and host hosted matches during the CONCACAF Gold Cup on multiple occasions. Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson as well as the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum have also hosted matches during the CONCACAF Gold Cup over the years.

The Super Bowl is the annual championship game of the National Football League (NFL) typically played annually between the champion of the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC). The Los Angeles area has hosted the Super Bowl seven times in two different venues, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and the Rose Bowl. The city ranks third on the list of having hosted the most number of Super Bowls, after Miami and New Orleans.[65]

Los Angeles will host the Super Bowl for an eighth time when they host Super Bowl LVI in 2022 which will be held at SoFi Stadium.[66]

The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also known as the "Midsummer Classic", is an annual professional baseball game sanctioned by Major League Baseball (MLB) contested between the All-Stars from the American League (AL) and National League (NL). Los Angeles metropolitan area area have hosted the MLB All-Star Game five times and it is set to host it for the sixth time in the summer of 2022.[2]

After 75 years of being held in other US cities, The U.S. Open will be back to Los Angeles in 2023.[67] The tournament will be held in Los Angeles Country Club.[67]

Los Angeles has served as host of the Special Olympics on two occasions.

Los Angeles first hosted the Special Olympics World Summer Games in 1972. On September 15, 2011, it was announced that Los Angeles would host the 2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games. The games were held between July 24 to August 2, 2015.

Los Angeles will host the 9th edition of the College football national championship at SoFi Stadium in January 2023.

Aside from hosting various incarnations of the championship game, Los Angeles area hosts the annual Tournament of Roses college foot ball game, commonly known as the Rose Bowl Game annually on New Years day.

Boxing matches have been held throughout the Greater Los Angeles Area. Venues that have held boxing matches include Ocean Park Arena, Hollywood Legion Stadium, Naud Junction, Grand Olympic Auditorium, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Wrigley Field, Dodger Stadium, Valley Garden Arena, Los Angeles Sports Arena, The Forum, Honda Center, Microsoft Theater, Staples Center and StubHub Center.

The 2016 ICC World Cricket League Division Four tournament was held at the Leo Magnus Cricket Complex in Woodley Park, Van Nuys, Los Angeles between October 28 and November 5, 2016, involving national teams from Bermuda, Denmark, Italy, Jersey, Oman, and the United States.

Los Angeles has played host to the 2013 and 2016 League of Legends World Championship Finals.