How LA28 Plans to Elevate the Paralympics in Los Angeles

Los Angeles will host the Paralympic Games beginning Aug. 15, 2028, with opening events at SoFi Stadium. LA28 positions the Games as a chance to advance the Paralympic movement after Paris 2024 raised global visibility and audience engagement.

Paris set measurable new highs. It sold 2.5 million tickets and logged 12,941 global broadcast hours. Live audience size rose 40% compared with 2021 and 117% compared with 2016. A Nielsen Sports study commissioned by the International Paralympic Committee found 73% of viewers said the Paris Games positively changed their attitudes toward people with disabilities. Those metrics are the starting point LA28 wants to exceed.

LA28 leaders say the 2028 Games should both spotlight high performance and shift perception. Ileana Rodriguez, LA28 vice president of Paralympic strategy and relations and a former Paralympic swimmer, has described a desire to reverse the tendency to foreground disability instead of sport. The organizing team presents the Games as an arena for athletic achievement first.

Athlete perspective and competitive stakes

Raising expectations affects preparation and selection. Coaches and adapted-sport specialists note more refined training techniques and higher performance baselines. The implication for LA28 is a Games with tighter competition and more records to chase, which organizers hope will attract broader mainstream audiences and media coverage.

LA28 frames the 2028 Paralympics as an opportunity to change public perceptions at scale by centering athletes' performances in coverage and ceremonies. The organizers want viewers and spectators to focus on sport outcomes rather than first impressions about disability. LA28's strategy links improved visibility with long-term shifts in how people perceive athletic potential among competitors with disabilities.

What to watch leading to Aug. 15, 2028

• How LA28 programs the opening ceremony and core venues to foreground athletes and competition.
• Whether marketing and broadcast partners deliver audience gains beyond Paris's uptick in viewership and ticket sales.
• Athletes' performance trends at world championships and national trials that signal how many records might be challenged in L.A.

LA28 aims to capitalize on the Paris momentum by staging a Paralympic Games that highlights elite sport and reaches new audiences. The stiffer competitive landscape and record-breaking pace at recent Games raise expectations for both athletic outcomes and public impact in 2028.