about the los angeles sports council

MISSION
To create positive IMPACT in the Los Angeles region by utilizing the INCLUSIVE power of the LA SPORTS ecosystem through year-round INNOVATIVE strategy and programs.

INNOVATE

We champion the Los Angeles sports community by connecting LA’s incredible sports teams, venues, and business leaders while leveraging our Board of Directors and unparalleled resources. The LA Sports Council provides a unique opportunity for our network to create strategic alliances through INNOVATIVE thought sharing and programs.

INCLUDE

The LA Sports Council is led by a diverse Board of Directors that is INCLUSIVE of prominent sports industry leaders representing teams, leagues, venues, annual events and businesses. By uniting the LA sports industry and beyond, we are a resource for members of the greatest sports community year round.  We believe that a strong and connected sports business community means a strong community across the region.

IMPACT

As the premier Los Angeles sports trade association, the LA Sports Council strives to make a significant IMPACT in the Los Angeles community. Our ongoing programs and events, including the LA Sports Awards, LA Sports Innovation Conference and exclusive Board member engagements, drive awareness and funds to meaningful causes such as Ready, Set, Gold! and other charitable initiatives. With this common goal, the LA Sports Council is fulfilling its commitment to bettering the Los Angeles community and celebrating its successes on and off the field.

Founded in 1988, the LA Sports Council, a non-profit 501(c)(6), is the premier sports trade association in the Los Angeles region. Through year-round innovative programming and strategies, the LA Sports Council brings together and celebrates the greatest sports community in the world. In the epicenter of the sports world, the LA Sports Council believes that uniting the industry on a year-round basis will lead to greater strength and a strong and healthy community for all residents in the region.

The LASC Board of Directors also represent the Board of the Los Angeles Sports Council Foundation 501(c)(3) and the Southern California Committee for the Olympic Games 501(c)(3). Although separate organizations, all entities work together for a common goal. 

The stunning success of the 1984 Olympic Games, the first ever to be financed by the private sector, changed event management, sports marketing, and Los Angeles.

That sports and events could be an economic catalyst in the region was not lost on the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, which established a volunteer committee in 1986 to take advantage of the city’s now pre-eminent status. The L.A. Olympic Organizing Committee’s head of government relations, David Simon, was now the Chamber’s Senior Vice President and recruited John C. Argue, the head of the L.A. bid for the 1984 Games, to lead the group.

The first target was, suitably, an Olympic-related event. The U.S. Olympic Festival was the United States Olympic Committee’s domestic showcase event, gathering more than 2,800 athletes from across the nation for 10 days of competitions, in 37 sports. Bringing it to Los Angeles was the first step in a planned-for campaign to bring the Olympic Games back in 2004.

An initial bid from the City of Los Angeles was revamped and the USOC was impressed, selecting Los Angeles in 1987 to host the event in 1991, with a separate organizing committee formed to stage it.

At the same time, the National Football League was considering where to place the 1991 Super Bowl. Three L.A.-area facilities – the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Rose Bowl and Anaheim Stadium – all bid for the game separately, assuring that none would be selected. The game was handed to Tampa, Florida. Somehow, the area had to come together to win.

The Los Angeles Sports Council was incorporated as a stand-alone entity in 1988, and was immediately able to create a unified bid for the 1993 Super Bowl, offering the NFL an unheard-of choice of the three sites to pick from. The game was held at the Rose Bowl, with a stand-alone Host Committee that created a first-time “Touchdown for Youth” program to allow some 700 inner-city youth to attend the game. The game created $182 million in economic impact for the area.

Now the Sports Council was in high gear, looking for more events to bring to the L.A. area....

Full History

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