What Long Beach Can Learn from Milan-Cortina 2026
Why Secondary Cities Often Become the Olympic Story
As we look ahead to the Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympics, much of the global spotlight is understandably fixed on Los Angeles.
But if we pay attention to what is happening right now in Italy with the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, there’s a strategic lesson emerging — especially for Long Beach.
Milan is the headline city. It’s the international brand. The fashion capital. The financial center.
And yet, when people imagine these Winter Games, many picture the mountains of Cortina d'Ampezzo.
Why?
Because secondary cities, when they lean fully into their identity, often become the emotional center of the Games.
That should get our attention.
The Cortina Effect
Cortina is not Italy’s largest city. But it is iconic. Alpine. Intimate. Visually unforgettable.
Long Beach may not carry the global entertainment brand of LA, but what we offer is equally distinctive:
A walkable waterfront competition footprint
A deep maritime and sailing legacy
A vibrant small-business community
A coastal identity that feels authentic, not manufactured
Milan leaned into what makes it Milan. Cortina leaned into what makes it Cortina.
Long Beach must do the same.
Distributed Hosting Is the New Olympic Model
The Milan–Cortina Games are geographically distributed across regions. LA28 follows a similar model. These are not single-park Olympics anymore.
That shift changes the economic equation.
It means opportunity will not be confined to one Olympic village. It will ripple across host cities, especially those that organize early and define their value clearly.
Long Beach is not a satellite. It is a primary competition hub in 2028.
But hosting events is not the same as capturing long-term value.
The real question is this:
Will Long Beach define its Olympic identity, or will it let others define it for us?
Identity Is an Economic Strategy
Milan brings modern sophistication. Cortina brings alpine heritage.
LA will bring global media scale. Long Beach can bring coastal sport culture, maritime history, and community-driven hospitality.
For our business community, identity is not decorative. It is strategic.
The cities that benefit most from the Olympics are those that clarify:
What experience visitors should expect
What makes them different from the primary host city
How they want to be remembered after the flame goes out
Cortina hosted the Winter Games in 1956. That legacy still shapes its brand today.
Long Beach hosted Olympic sailing in 1932 and 1984. In 2028, we return to the world stage.
Some cities host once. Others become Olympic cities.
That transformation happens through clarity and coordination, not chance.
In my next post, I’ll outline what this means for Long Beach small businesses, and how to begin preparing now.
The runway to 2028 is shorter than it feels.
The Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce has the opportunity to think bigger than individual storefronts. The Chamber has long served as the connective tissue between business, city leadership, and regional opportunity. LA28 gives us a shared platform to define Long Beach’s Olympic identity together — intentionally, collaboratively, and early. If you aren’t engaged in Chamber conversations around the Games yet, now is the time. Cities that organize first often benefit most.
