2028 Olympics Schedule: Flag football joins list of 50 sports at LA28

As the Paris Olympics near their end, planning for the next Summer Games starts. Next year, they will be in Los Angeles, California, and the organizing committee is implementing some changes.

The International Olympic Committee Session approved LA28’s proposal for five additional sports in 2023. The decision has been taken by the 141st Session of the IOC, and took into account the use of existing facilities, gender equality, and including some of the most popular sports in the United States and worldwide.

The organizing city has a right to propose the addition of a new sport — something that has happened many times in the past — but the final decision lies with the IOC.

Baseball/softball, cricket (T20), flag football, lacrosse (sixes), and squash have been officially included as additional sports on the program for the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 (LA28).

What do we know about the 2028 Games?

The Olympic Games in Los Angeles are planned to start on July 14, 2028, and run through July 30. The Olympic Games have not been organized in the U.S. since Winter Games in Salt Lake City in 2002.

Los Angeles has hosted the Games twice before: in 1984 and in 1932. For the first time in history, the hosting city doesn’t have to build new facilities as Los Angeles has enough stadiums and other sporting venues as it is, according to Bleacher Report.

What are the new sports at the 2028 Olympics?

Some of the added sports are not entirely “newly introduced” as they were featured in the past.

Baseball and softball have been part of the program at several previous Games, most recently at Tokyo 2020. Although both baseball and softball feature men’s and women’s world championships, at the Olympic level, baseball has been designated exclusively for men, while softball has been designated exclusively for women.

Cricket had previously been included in the Paris Games in the year 1900. The format approved for the LA28 Games is T20 — a short form of cricket that lasts just one day (as opposed to different variations which can last up to five days) where each team plays a single innings (one team gets to bat once until they are out of the game), batting for a maximum of 20 overs.

Lacrosse has previously featured in Olympic Games in St Louis in 1904 and London in 1908. The version to be played in 2028 will differ from traditional Lacrosse as it will be derived from the World Lacrosse Sixes which has some minor differences such as being played on a 70m x 36m pitch.

Squash and flag football have not been played at the Olympics before and are about to have their premiere during the 2028 Games.

The IOC Session also approved Modern Pentathlon and Weightlifting, which were not part of the original proposal but were recommended by the IOC executive board. These were approved two weeks prior.

Both sports have to meet conditions to be part of the Olympics, including the International Weightlifting Federation’s decision to manage its anti-doping program, which will be closely monitored at least until the Games in 2028.

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