LA's Olympic Countdown: Six Out of Ten and Racing the Clock

Two years might sound like plenty of time, but ask State Senator Ben Allen how he’d rate Los Angeles’readiness for the 2028 Olympics and you get a refreshingly honest answer: a six or seven out of ten. Not a confident nine. Not a shaky five. Just the real talk from someone actually overseeing the whole operation.

Allen, who leads a special State Senate Committee tasked with managing LA Olympic preparations, sat down with KCRA 3’s California Politics 360 to break down what’s working, what’s broken, and what keeps him up at night. The good news? The recent FIFA World Cup gave LA a real-world stress test—and while it revealed cracks, it also proved the city can actually pull this off. The bad news? Those cracks are real, and they’re demanding immediate attention.

Start with the wins. When Allen attended World Cup matches at SoFi Stadium, he witnessed what he described as“a really superlative experience.”Fans showed up, the venues performed, and the city didn’t collapse under the weight of international sporting crowds. But then reality hit: congestion around stadiums was brutal. Parking costs spiked wildly. Basic city services—trash pickup, traffic flow, metro coordination—struggled to keep pace. Even visa logistics became a headache: a referee trying to enter the country to officiate was denied entrance, and the Iranian team ended up based in Mexico, forced to cross the border just for game day.

Here’s where Allen got smart about lessons learned. Metro’s $1.75 express shuttles during the World Cup proved that affordable transit works, but the Olympics will demand far more buses and better planning around getting people in and out of venues. Ticket pricing is another minefield: while some World Cup tickets reached stratospheric prices, Allen acknowledged concerns about initial Olympic drops being too expensive for everyday fans. The solution? A tier of $28 tickets specifically designed to keep the games accessible to locals.

The federal relationship? Complicated but cooperative. Allen described talks with the White House and Congress as“positive and bipartisan,”with significant security resources already pledged. State support is expected, corporate sponsorships are rolling in strong, and ticket sales will help offset costs. Crucially, the public won’t foot a massive bill—a promise that hinges on keeping private funding streams flowing. When pressed about the risk of cancellation or relocation, Allen was clear:“I just simply don’t see that happening. We are on track.”

Technology will play a starring role in the fan experience. No more paper tickets. Seamless integration of parking, transit, entrance, and fan zones through digital platforms. Enhanced viewing experiences on screens and in person. Security investments in cutting-edge monitoring and coordination with local police and FBI partners. LA is also planning a“wonderful Cultural Olympiad program”to make the games feel like more than just sports.

What’s the real takeaway? LA isn’t perfectly ready, and Allen isn’t pretending it is. But the city’s learning fast from a World Cup that exposed vulnerabilities while proving capability. Two years is enough time to fix congestion, expand transit, refine security, and price tickets fairly—if the work happens now. Allen’s advice to Californians: start planning your trip. Games will happen in Northern California too, but the main event down south is going to be something special. The only question left is whether LA can turn that six out of ten into an eight or nine by kickoff.