The homeless encampments remain a major problem<\/a>. No one is going to want to walk around a city in which you have to step over sleeping bodies or flee from raving madmen.<\/p>\n The World Cup is finally, sadly, over \u2014 and now it’s LA’s turn to prepare for the next big international event: 2028 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n The damage from last year’s wildfires is still a major eyesore. The rebuilding effort should be an opportunity to showcase the can-do American spirit<\/a>. Instead, the slow pace of progress is a grim testimony to LA’s dysfunction.<\/p>\n There have been some positive signs.\u00a0<\/p>\n After The California Post raised the question<\/a> of how LA would pay for cost overruns, the city reached a deal with the LA28 organizing committee.\u00a0<\/p>\n That will protect taxpayers from a fiscal burden that could have stretched far into the future, long after the athletes and spectators had gone home.<\/p>\n The damage from last year’s wildfires is still a major eyesore. The rebuilding effort should be an opportunity to showcase the can-do American spirit. Instead, the slow pace of progress is a grim testimony to LA’s dysfunction. Anadolu via Getty Images<\/p>\n The city has also shelved some of its differences with the Trump administration, and both are working together.<\/p>\n But more needs to be done. And a good place to start would be with the lessons of the World Cup.<\/p>\n What worked best was allowing ordinary people to share in the economic opportunities of a big international event.<\/p>\n Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters<\/p>\n California Post News: Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, X<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, WhatsApp<\/a>, LinkedIn<\/a> Social media channels were filled with excited videos of tourists hanging out in diners or trying on cowboy boots.<\/p>\n They were looking for an authentic American experience. They found it \u2014 and more: They met real Americans, far from the stadiums and hotels.<\/p>\n The 2028 Olympics should spread its venues around as widely as possible, to showcase all of Southern California’s charm.<\/p>\n But more needs to be done. And a good place to start would be with the lessons of the World Cup. Anadolu via Getty Images<\/p>\n And since fewer spectators typically travel for the Olympics than for the World Cup, LA needs to make itself as attractive \u2014 and affordable \u2014 a destination as possible.<\/p>\n Hold off on tax hikes and minimum wage boosts. Bigger crowds are good for everybody.<\/p>\n The worst thing about the World Cup was the ticket prices.<\/p>\n Sure, you could find $140 cheap seats in the nosebleed section of distant stadiums in group stage matches that didn’t really matter.<\/p>\n But the prices for most of the matches were exorbitant.<\/p>\n The 2028 Olympics risk the same mistake. Already, there are complaints about $5,000 tickets being the only ones available<\/a>.<\/p>\n Add seats to the venues. Create more “fan zones.” Do whatever it takes to allow as many people as possible to enjoy the magic of the Games.<\/p>\n Two years is not a long time. But it’s still enough time to make the 2028 Games the best.<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/california_post_772\/6aa802acd9ee0f4a42a58af7e64ed9f8.jpeg\"\/)
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