After a chaotic presale rollout, LA28 opened its locals’ presale Thursday—but there’s a catch. Fans logged in to claim $28 seats and walked away stunned when checkout added service fees that in some carts totaled roughly 24% of the ticket price.
LA28’s ticket program went live for Los Angeles and Oklahoma City residents with timed access slots, and the organizing committee posted purchase “pro tips” on its verified X account to help buyers navigate the site (resize your window, check browser zoom, don’t use a VPN). Despite that guidance, users flooded social channels with screenshots of “access denied” errors, hidden checkout buttons and carts that ballooned into the thousands after fees were added.
Tickets themselves range from promotional $28 entries to premium packages topping several thousand dollars; examples circulated online showed athletics premium seats priced from about $2,350 to $8,250. One local who said she bought 16 tickets reported a $504.63 service fee on $2,100 of tickets. Another buyer’s mixed-cart for swimming, basketball and soccer pushed past $11,000 with more than $1,000 in fees—figures that many fans labeled a “money grab.”
LA28 told fans that the service fee is percentage-based and is set using market research, venue capacity and seat location. The committee also noted that most inventory remains moderately priced: roughly 5% of tickets exceed $1,000, more than 75% are under $400, and nearly half are under $200. General public tickets are scheduled to go on sale April 9, while locals had a 48-hour window to complete presale purchases.
Fans compared the charges to Paris 2024, where many reported far lower fees, and described the difference as staggering—roughly a fourfold increase in some cases. That contrast underscores a broader trend: as live-event demand climbs, service fees in the U.S. for premium and bundled experiences are growing faster than base ticket prices, which risks alienating casual attendees and could invite regulatory scrutiny down the line (and not just bad PR).
Reaction has been swift and raw: posts ranged from exasperated troubleshooting—“my time slot started but I didn’t get an email”—to profanity-laced disbelief at the percentage levied at checkout. Many also reported spurious VPN or private-relay warnings when they had neither enabled such tools, which compounded the confusion during tight purchase windows. Will the backlash prompt fee changes? That remains open.
What happens next: LA28 says fans who experience technical trouble can contact official support during the 48-hour presale period; the organizing committee framed the early drop as just the first opportunity to “claim a seat at the LA28 Olympic Games.” The Opening Ceremony is set for July 14, 2028, and the Paralympics run in August—so there will be additional sales and inventory drops ahead.