For the First Time Ever, the Flame Comes to Every State
Somewhere in your state, on a road you have probably driven, the Olympic flame is going to pass by in 2028. That has never been true before, for anyone, in any state, in any Olympics.
LA28 CEO Reynold Hoover made it official at a California Senate hearing: the 2028 Olympic torch relay will visit all 50 United States, run for more than three months, and arrive at the opening ceremony in Los Angeles on July 14, 2028. "We believe the torch relay will bind the nation to LA and to California," said Hoover, a retired three-star Army general, "and it's a way that we are going to unify the world."
Then he said the line this whole site is built around: "This is the home games for America."
No American relay has covered every state before:
| Relay | States | Start | Finish |
|---|
| Los Angeles 1984 | 33 | New York City | LA Coliseum |
| Atlanta 1996 | 42 | Los Angeles | Atlanta |
| Salt Lake 2002 | 46 | Atlanta | Salt Lake City |
| LA 2028 | 50 | Atlanta | Los Angeles, July 14, 2028 |
What LA28 Has Confirmed So Far
The verified picture as of September 29, 2026, from LA28's public statements:
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It starts in Atlanta. The flame is lit in Olympia, Greece, and begins its US journey in Atlanta, host of the 1996 Games, in spring 2028. (The full announcement.)
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Four presenting partners. Coca-Cola, JPMorganChase, Allstate, and Xfinity, with more relay partners to come.
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The public will nominate torchbearers. LA28: "the general public will have the opportunity to be selected as a torchbearer via a nomination process." Details are due in the coming months, and the full route in 2027.
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All 50 states, more than three months. Working back from July 14, 2028, that points to a start around April 2028.
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The finish line is a double opening ceremony. LA28 has confirmed a two-venue opening spanning the LA Memorial Coliseum and SoFi Stadium, the first of its kind for a Summer Games.
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The Games behind it are enormous. 15,000 athletes. More than 800 medal events at 49 venues. 36 Olympic sports, five of them new: baseball/softball, squash, cricket, lacrosse, and flag football. And the first Paralympic Games Los Angeles has ever hosted.
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The scale is unlike anything in American sports. LA28 describes the job as staging seven Super Bowls a day for 30 straight days, with roughly 14 million tickets to sell and up to 50,000 volunteers to recruit.
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The money and muscle are lining up. Sponsors include Delta, Comcast, Honda, Cisco, AECOM, Lilly, and Uber. Security carries a National Special Security Event designation, with $1 billion in initial federal funding already signed.
Every date so far is in the LA28 torch relay timeline, and cities are already signing Torch Relay Agreements.
Still unannounced: the route, the exact dates, the torch design, the torchbearer count, and the details of the nomination process. Every one of those is coming between now and spring 2028, and each is a story this site will cover the day it breaks.
Why a 50-State Relay Changes Who Gets to Carry the Flame
The torch relay is the only part of the Olympics that comes to you. Most Americans will never sit inside the Coliseum for an opening ceremony. In 2028 the flame will pass through every state.
A route that long needs a lot of torchbearers. Atlanta 1996 used about 12,500 torchbearers. Paris 2024 used roughly 11,000 across its Olympic and Paralympic relays. LA28 hasn't given a 2028 number yet, but a 50-state route should need more.
Since the 1984 Los Angeles relay changed the rules, most of those slots have gone to people with no Olympic connection at all, nominated by someone who knew their story. That's the group I'm trying to join, and it's why I built the nomination page.
The Questions Everyone Is Asking
When does the 2028 Olympic torch relay start?
In spring 2028, in Atlanta. LA28 has described a relay of more than three months ending July 14, 2028, which points to roughly April. No exact date yet.
Where does the relay start?
Atlanta, confirmed by LA28 on September 29, 2026. It was the favorite in the start-city rumor file, and why LA28 chose it.
How do I become a torchbearer for LA 2028?
Through a public nomination process, which LA28 will detail in the coming months. Expect partner nomination programs alongside it. The full playbook is here: How to Become a Torchbearer for the 2028 LA Olympics.
Will the relay visit my state?
Yes. LA28 has confirmed all 50 states.
Follow the Flame From Here
Between now and spring 2028: torchbearer nominations, a route announcement in 2027, a torch design reveal, and the flame's landing in Atlanta. I am tracking every announcement while running my own campaign to carry the flame for one mile of the biggest relay ever staged.
If you'd nominate me when the forms open, add your name here and I'll send you the link. For relay news, sign up for updates.
