Are the Olympics Predicting an Economic Disaster in LA?

Added: 2026-05-23

[00:00:00]Over the last 13 Olympics, only one has been profitable. Hosting the games often means building new stadiums, security systems, and even entire Olympic villages, all for a 16-day event. And yes, putting up billions or even tens of billions in purpose-built infrastructure can attract tourism and business activity, but costs have a habit of spiraling with little to no return in long-term economic output. But in 1984, one man looked at that system and decided not to play. For the LA games, Peter Ueberroth ran the organizing committee like a corporation, not a government program. No new stadiums, no vanity infrastructure, but a commercial approach with a lucrative broadcast rights bidding war. The city walked away with a $215 million surplus, a playbook that should have reshaped the Olympic model, but didn't. And it's in this gap that enhanced games is emerging, a privately funded alternative built explicitly on the model Ueberroth pioneered. Unlike the IOC structure, the company is publicly traded, giving investors direct exposure to the business behind the games. But the enhanced games is better than the Olympics. Well, kind of. They allow performance-enhancing drugs and frankly but openly and safely. Every protocol is supervised by doctors and biologists and tailored to each athlete's biology, because no two bodies respond the same, creating outcomes you will never see anywhere else. But the company isn't only building a sporting event. They're also building a consumer health and performance business designed to bring those same optimization principles to everyday people. From diagnostics and hormone optimization to longevity and human performance products. Their inaugural games are scheduled for May 21st to 24th, 2026 in Las Vegas.

[00:01:31]Meanwhile, Los Angeles gets the Olympics again in 2028. The only city that ever made it work. The question isn't whether they know how, it's whether the IOC lets them, or if it remains that