LA Olympics will keep ‘Intuit’ on Clippers arena as part of groundbreaking venue-naming deal

Los Angeles Olympic organizers have struck an unprecedented deal with Intuit, allowing the financial software company to retain naming rights for its venue during the 2028 Summer Games. This marks the first time in Olympic history that corporate venue names will be permitted during the international sporting event.

The agreement means the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, which serves as the regular home of the NBA’s LA Clippers, will keep its corporate moniker when it hosts Olympic basketball competitions in 2028. Similarly, Honda Center in Anaheim will maintain its branded identity while hosting volleyball events.

This groundbreaking approach to venue naming rights is expected to generate significant additional revenue for the Los Angeles Olympics, potentially adding multiple millions of dollars beyond the event’s projected $7.15 billion budget. The strategy reflects a more business-oriented approach to Olympic planning than previous host cities have employed.

“Casey Wasserman said from Day 1 that we wanted to run a games that was fiscally responsible,” explained John Slusher, who heads LA28’s marketing efforts, referring to the organizing committee’s chairman. “The idea of naming rights is obviously one that we thought could add incremental value.”

The organizing committee has identified up to 19 venues, many of them temporary facilities, as candidates for corporate naming rights. Companies that already hold naming rights to Los Angeles venues will receive first opportunity to negotiate deals with Olympic organizers. However, not all venues will retain their corporate identities during the Games. SoFi Stadium, home to the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams and set to host the opening and closing ceremonies as well as swimming events, will be referred to as “2028 Stadium” during the Olympics.

The Intuit partnership extends beyond mere naming rights. The company has committed to providing free tax preparation services for some U.S. athletes and expanding its financial education programs throughout the Los Angeles community as part of the agreement.

“Our commitment to powering prosperity aligns perfectly with the spirit of the movement,” said Thomas Ranese, Intuit’s chief marketing officer, in the announcement.

This naming rights strategy emerges as part of a broader push by LA28 to secure corporate partnerships. Intuit joins Starbucks and Honda as recent “founding partners” for the Los Angeles Games, reflecting what organizers describe as increasing momentum in their sponsorship efforts.

Slusher, who assumed leadership of LA28’s marketing division in late 2023, expressed confidence in the committee’s progress toward ambitious sponsorship targets. The organization aims to secure between $800 million and $1 billion in corporate deals during 2025, reaching $2 billion in total sponsorships by year’s end. The ultimate goal stands at $2.5 billion.

“We feel really good about where we’re at, and we have optimism going forward,” Slusher stated.

The accelerating pace of partnership announcements represents a significant turnaround for LA28’s commercial program, which initially faced concerns about its slow start. Market observers note that the positive reception of the 2024 Paris Olympics has helped generate renewed corporate interest in Olympic sponsorship opportunities.

LA28’s approach to venue naming reflects broader changes in Olympic commercial strategies, as organizing committees and the International Olympic Committee seek sustainable financial models for hosting the increasingly expensive global event. By leveraging existing corporate relationships and the robust sponsorship landscape of American sports, Los Angeles appears positioned to establish new precedents for Olympic marketing that future host cities might emulate.