Brand France makes its LA 2028 Olympics play with sun, sport and savoir-faire
By planting its Olympic clubhouse on Santa Monica’s shoreline, France is turning the 2028 Games into a stage for cultural influence as much as sporting success.
The French Olympic Committee is going ahead with plans to establish “Club France” on Santa Monica State Beach for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. For 35 days, French athletes, guests and fans will gather at the Annenberg Community Beach House for all things français, from great food and hospitality to live events and programming. The deal could be finalised tomorrow with a price tag for the space at a reported $1.55m (€1.35m) – but it’s money well spent.
Santa Monica might be more used to weekend-long parties with people spilling onto the sand, drinks in hand, yet Annenberg Community Beach House is removed from the raucousness of the pier. It’s an area more akin to St Tropez or Cannes. But big celebrations are on the cards once the Games kick off: the opening day, 14 July, is also la Fête nationale (Bastille Day). The 1920s Annenberg House estate, at two oceanfront hectares, offers a range of potential uses, few more envy-inducing than the house’s modernist, bare-concrete wing that harbours a swimming pool. Expect the French to be throwing an elevated take on a quintessential LA pool party. St-Germain spritzes for all, au bord de la piscine.
The committee’s decision isn’t frivolous; it’s a smart play. Team USA House in the Palais Brongniart during Paris 2024 was a great example of how countries and brands (Team USA joined up with Ralph Lauren) can build their own temporary embassies during global events. For France, securing one of the best spots in town well ahead of schedule is impressive but the programming will have to match the setting. It could prove a major soft-power win before any medals have been given out.
Part of the magic is that this works both ways. The City of Santa Monica, struggling with a $33m (€28.6m) budget deficit, has pulled out from hosting Olympic sports (even the popular and relatively cheap beach volleyball) and instead opened its finest real estate to companies and governments looking for a base at the Games. The interest for these vacancies has been high – it takes local knowledge and careful diplomacy to seal a deal such as Annenberg House, bidding against other nations and global brands.
What sets France apart is its know-how. The Santa Monica location of Club France is itself shrewd; west LA is home to a sizeable French-American community. There are major French schools nearby; the Alliance Française in Century City; and a slew of cafés and restaurants run by French owners. The latest newcomer is Petitgrain Boulangerie, a little shop on Wilshire Boulevard that draws long lines for its croissants lathered with butter imported from Isigny Sainte-Mère.
This cultural overlap makes Santa Monica a natural home for Club France to support and draw in the local community. The approach is eloquently both California-centric and French-forward. And here lies the secret. The model for other countries to follow is: find your people and help them help you to stand out. Los Angeles is a city of cities; Swedes would do well to engage their community in Venice Beach; Brazilians might want to try Palms and Culver City. As ever, locals (or in this case, local emigrants) know best. What might not be possible in Malibu or Glendale could prove easy in Manhattan Beach or Burbank – and vice versa.
LA 2028 might feel distant, especially given there’s a World Cup for the US to co-host first this summer, but considered planning can help countries to take a little bit of that Olympic legacy home with them – and, perhaps more importantly, leave a lasting impression behind. Following a wildly successful Paris 2024 Olympics, Brand France looks set to continue its run of sporting hospitality and soft-power skill.
Kalle Oskari Mattila is a Los Angeles-based writer.
Further reading?
– From the Olympic Village to student housing: Manfredi Catella on building Milan’s future
– Olympiapark’s success story: How it set the gold standard in architecture
– How three family-run French labels found new relevance in a crowded market
