2028 LA Olympics reveals “ever-changing” logo co-designed by celebs

Branding for the games has been designed to encompass and represent the multitude of different identities found in the Californian city, according to organisers.

The branding and logo for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games has been revealed, with organisers opting for a continuously changing emblem that features a “dynamic ‘A’” graphic.

The decision to bring the games to the city was officially made by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) back in 2017. The 2028 games will mark the third time the Californian city has hosted the sporting event. Previous editions were held in LA in 1932 and 1984.

Branding for the LA Olympics has been informed by the area’s cultural diversity, according to organisers. The event’s story could not be represented “by one singular idea or theme”, so the decision has been made to instead implement a “dynamic” identity, with an “ever-changing” emblem at its heart.

“A mashup of the city’s cultures, sport and iconic typography”

The emblem is made up of two main elements: a “strong and bold” foundation comprised of the ‘L’, ‘2’ and ‘8’, and a “dynamic ‘A’”, which is constantly changing.

Three static elements anchor the logo. Inspirations for them are diverse – organisers explain that they represent “a mashup of the city’s cultures, sport and iconic typography”, drawing on the likes of the letterforms from the LA Memorial Coliseum and the original 1932 Olympic Games signage. LA-based typographer Jeremy Mickel is behind the type for the wider Olympic identity.

Each of these three foundational letterforms is different, supposedly representing the diversity of characters within the city, while the consistent black and white colour palette aims to act as a “neutral stage for vibrant and diverse stories to come through the dynamic ‘A’s”. Beyond the logo, LA28 says that the signature “chroma key green” will be used throughout branding as a nod to the city’s creative industry and its hand in pioneering green screen technology.

“The LA28 font can be many things, taking on slightly different expressions based on its use: elegant and historic, bold and unconventional or athletic and modern,” organisers explain.

The inaugural LA Creators

Accompanying Mickel’s typography is a series of ‘A’s that have been designed to represent “the infinite number of stories that come to life in Los Angeles”. The use of an “ever-changing” logo underlines the idea that this is an identity built for the digital age first and foremost. This changeable logo is distinctly different to what other Olympic logos have offered in the past, such as Paris 2024 or Tokyo 2020.

The ‘A’s have been designed by famous LA-based creatives and sportspeople. Among the list is Grammy Award-winner Billie Eilish, actress Reese Witherspoon, Olympic medallist Adam Rippon and Bobby Hundreds, co-founder of streetwear brand The Hundreds.

Some ‘A’s, organisers reveal, have been designed by the famous faces themselves, while others have collaborated with designers to bring their vision to life. All are used to accent the black and white colour palette foundations, and are characterised by their bright colours.

Organisers have referred to the list of 26 names as the “inaugural LA Creators”, suggesting that further versions could be released in the eight-year run up to the event.

“Co-creations shapes a future we all want to be a part of”

Several creative organisations have been named by LA28 as collaborators on the branding project. The list includes LA-based creative consultancy Works Collective, advertising agencies Stink Studios and Giant Spoon, video production studio Media Monks and the Nike Design Team.

Alongside the reveal of the branding and emblem, a campaign video has also been released which tells the story of the beginning journey toward the 2028 games. It has been created by Stink Studios and has been produced in English and Spanish.


What do you think of the new logo? Tell us in the comments below…

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Comments
  • Helen Noel September 4, 2020 at 9:05 am

    Oh dear.

  • Dave Oldbloke September 6, 2020 at 8:22 am

    The event’s story could not be represented “by one singular idea or theme”
    Unlike all the previous Olympics.
    Designed by a committee with the help of a committee of celebs.
    This’ll be fantastic for the merchandising and marketing departments.
    GO. LA28 !!! Let’s hope TikTok is still around and COVID19 isn’t by then.

  • Neil Littman September 6, 2020 at 10:30 am

    Doesn’t say anything to me about the olympics or the events that take place. Looks more like it is promoting tourism. Very confusing.

  • Stephen September 7, 2020 at 4:03 pm

    A very similar idea to London 2012 with their infill logo, the problem London’s faced was the inability to trademark an ever changing logo. Flexible ever changing logos are pointless when so much of the Olympic Games will be broadcast as static, printed graphics.

  • tkd September 12, 2020 at 6:59 pm

    It’s easy to be somewhat dismissive of these Logos today in 2020. These logos convey a very young looking, diverse and gritty street art vision of LA, far from the elegance of Paris 2024’s logo. Additionally, many of these LA logos were not conceived by graphic designers, but by a diverse collection of musicians, celebrities, street artists, actresses etc., giving us their own personal views of they see the city. This diversity, flexibility and populism is a far different approach from a singular professional designer interpreting the brief from the client.

    Remember that in recent years, cities have used Olympic logo design to change people’s perceptions of how those cities are viewed, often with an eye toward creating a more youthful city image. Josep Trias’ Barcelona’s 1992 emblem was a Miro-like human abstract brushstroke of jumping gymnast as the new Spain, with the blue of the sea, and the Iberian yellow and red – young, female and confident as it moved out of the shadows of the dour Franco decades to become a destination city. Sydney’s 200 logo was the indigenous anthropomorphic boomerang and opera house roof outline as a streamer, irreverent in Pacific-rim colors, designed to change perceptions from the dusty outback image many had of Australia. London in 2012 certainly sought to move its image to a far more youthful, and steetwise look in the receding wake of Crowns, Empire and Cool Brittania, and Wolf-Ollins’ work remains very youthful and controversial, even today in 2020.

    Remember also that this Olympic Identity is for an event happening eight years from now. The youth/street orientation of the graphics may well be quite a bit more mainstream and less edgy by then as we (and the younger target audience) grows into them over the next eight years. Next, these logos will be situated as part of a larger Olympic design system of colours, patterns, structures, and surfaces that provide much of the Olympic backgrounds and visual appeal. Some of the static Olympic venue graphics we see now may be quite different in 2028 as digital and electronic ways we experience the Olympics change. Some of these LA logos may become more prominent in time, others may recede or be added.

    In short, it’s too early to judge if these are effective or not…

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