Partnering with Starbucks, LA28 Aims to Gather $2.5 Billion in Revenue
Starbucks Secures First Olympic Sponsorship, Partners with LA28 for 2028 Games
Starbucks, the largest coffee chain in the United States (NASDAQ: SBUX), has made history by securing its first Olympic and Paralympic sponsorship. The company has signed as a founding partner for the LA28 organizing committee and Team USA, marking a significant milestone in its brand's expansion.
As part of the partnership, Starbucks will create a specially designed coffeehouse for Olympians, extending its presence to competition venues and volunteer hubs for the epic 2028 Olympic Games. This move is a part of Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol's efforts to rebuild personal connections with customers, following initiatives like abandoning pickup-only shops and adjusting store interiors.
LA28 chairperson and president Casey Wasserman aims to reach at least $2 billion in sponsorship revenue by the end of 2025. This ambitious goal is a step closer to realization with the $2.5 billion domestic corporate sponsorship secured from Starbucks for the 2028 Olympic Games.
Organizers are selling naming rights at competition venues for the first time for Olympic and Paralympic Games. Honda has already secured the naming rights for the volleyball venue, the Honda Center. However, the terms of the Starbucks agreement with LA28 have not been disclosed.
The LA28 sales team faced challenges in hitting the $2.5 billion target due to market softness driven by COVID-19. Despite these challenges, the committee has managed to secure several high-profile partnerships. Comcast extended its USOPC partnership before the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, while Delta signed a $400 million inaugural founding partnership deal in 2020. A Salesforce partnership was announced in 2021 but ended early in 2024.
As of now, founding partners for the LA28 Organizing Committee and Team USA include major companies like Coca-Cola, Intel, and Visa, while naming rights sponsors for competition venues have not been publicly disclosed yet. Costa Coffee, the largest coffee chain in the United Kingdom, was the official provider during the last Olympics.
This news comes as Starbucks has secured coffee exclusivity across NBCUniversal's multiplatform coverage of the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics and LA28. With this partnership, Starbucks is set to play a significant role in the upcoming Olympic Games, further strengthening its brand's association with global sports events.
