{"id":133625,"date":"2026-01-14T20:07:06","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T20:07:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/133625\/"},"modified":"2026-01-14T20:07:06","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T20:07:06","slug":"olympic-federation-of-ireland-to-establish-team-house-in-long-beach-for-2028-olympics-press-telegram","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/133625\/","title":{"rendered":"Olympic Federation of Ireland to establish team house in Long Beach for 2028 Olympics \u2013 Press Telegram"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Long Beach has been selected by the <a href=\"https:\/\/olympics.ie\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Olympic Federation of Ireland<\/a> to establish its Team Hospitality House for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, which plans to bring a dynamic, entertaining and culturally significant fan experience to the city.<\/p>\n<p>Mayor Rex Richardson announced this selection during the annual State of the City on Tuesday, Jan. 13. Representatives from the Olympic Federation of Ireland joined the mayor on stage at the Terrace Theater to deliver the news to the Long Beach community.<\/p>\n<p>With a large Irish American community, a bustling downtown tourism and entertainment district and a central location to the 2028 Games, Long Beach will serve as a prime location for Team Ireland House, officials said.<\/p>\n<p>This is the third National Hospitality House Long Beach has secured for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs we prepare for the Games, Long Beach will host International Hospitality Houses. These are places where countries create cultural homes, welcome athletes and visitors, and invite our community to experience their traditions firsthand,\u201d Richardson said during the address. \u201cTonight, we\u2019re proud to welcome another nation to our growing international community of hospitality houses. Tonight, we say welcome to Ireland.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Team Ireland House will be located at the Ovation Square event space on Pine Avenue in downtown Long Beach during the duration of the 2028 Summer Games.<\/p>\n<p>The Irish House plans to deliver a wide variety of cultural programming, events and showcases, live entertainment, athlete and family gatherings, sponsor activations, retail and exhibition experiences, and more, according to a press release.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Ireland Team House will transform the 2028 Games from something people simply watch into something they truly experience,\u201d First District Councilmember Mary Zendejas said in a statement. \u201cThis will be a dynamic gathering place where residents, families, visitors and athletes come together to celebrate culture, build community and feel connected to something global, right in the heart of Downtown Long Beach. It represents the kind of bold, inclusive vision that elevates our entire city.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Olympic Federation of Ireland will also host youth engagement opportunities through its <a href=\"https:\/\/daretobelieve.ie\/about\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Dare to Believe<\/a> program, which aims to inspire young people through an interactive curriculum that explores and brings Olympic values to life. More information about the Team Ireland House will be shared as the Games approach, according to a press release. Once plans for activities and events become more solidified, they will be reviewed and finalized pending the approval of applicable permits.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are thrilled to bring Team Ireland House to Long Beach for LA 2028,\u201d Peter Sherrard, CEO of the Olympic Federation of Ireland, said in a statement. \u201cOvation Square offers a world-class venue in a city that is deeply engaged with the Games and eager to welcome the Irish community.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith so many Olympic and Paralympic events taking place nearby, it will be a natural gathering point for athletes, families and supporters,\u201d Sherrard added. \u201cWe look forward to creating a vibrant home for Ireland on the West Coast.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Long Beach continues to be a sought-after destination by National Olympic Committees, National Paralympic Committees and other stakeholders to activate space for the 2028 Games, officials said. Team Houses are temporary hospitality venues set up by a country\u2019s NOC or NPC to serve as special event and gathering spaces, most often used to celebrate national culture and host a variety of public and private special events.<\/p>\n<p>As a venue city for the 2028 Summer Games, Long Beach is set to stage the largest number of sporting events \u2014 with 11 \u2014 outside the host city of Los Angeles .<\/p>\n<p>This announcement also marks the first confirmed activation of a local business space as part of the city\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/forms.office.com\/pages\/responsepage.aspx?id=wxE_MWhCak-NO8fmUBg-eOY9EBvEa6lHuKywbh6JPE1UMlJBTkdEM1JXR1M1U0owTEoyRklGVEFWMi4u&amp;route=shorturl\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">online interest form<\/a> for property owners interested in renting out their spaces to Games stakeholders, according to a press release.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLong Beach continues to prepare for the 2028 Games with intentionality, vision and a clear focus on delivering experiences that are both world-class and deeply rooted in our community,\u201d City Manager Tom Modica said in a statement. \u201cTeam Houses are a key part of that approach \u2013 and with the Irish Team House, they are bringing a thoughtfully planned space that supports international partners while activating our city in ways that create connection, visibility and lasting value for residents.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With Ireland\u2019s announcement, Long Beach is the first city in the region to secure three confirmed National Hospitality Houses for the 2028 Games. Long Beach has also been selected by the Hellenic Olympic Committee as the location for Greece\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.presstelegram.com\/2025\/09\/10\/opa-long-beach-selected-as-greeces-team-house-for-2028-summer-olympics\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">first Team House<\/a> at the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Greek Orthodox Church, and by the National Olympic Committee of Denmark as the location for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.presstelegram.com\/2025\/12\/19\/long-beach-selected-as-denmarks-base-of-operations-team-house-for-2028-summer-olympics\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">official House of Denmark<\/a> at the Westin Long Beach.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are proud to welcome the Team Ireland House for the 2028 Games and look forward to seeing this cultural space come alive with community connection, celebration and shared experiences for people of all ages,\u201d Richardson said in a statement. \u201cAs Long Beach continues to welcome Team Hospitality Houses, we are demonstrating firsthand the global confidence placed in our beautiful city.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>More information about Long Beach\u2019s commitment to the LA28 Games is available at <a href=\"http:\/\/longbeach.gov\/2028Games\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">longbeach.gov\/2028Games<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Long Beach has been selected by the Olympic Federation of Ireland to establish its Team Hospitality House for&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":133626,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[7,23,131,133,132,137,32235],"class_list":["post-133625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-california","tag-local-news","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-olympic-games"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133625","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=133625"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133625\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/133626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=133625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=133625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=133625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}