JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon during the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit on July 15, 2026 in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
Tom Brenner Bloomberg | Getty Images
LOS ANGELES — For years. JP Morgan Executives are discussing Olympic sponsorship with Olympic organizers. Ahead of the next tournament to be held in Los Angeles in 2028, the company has officially chosen to place a huge nine-figure bet as the tournament’s first global banking partner.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but this type of partnership is estimated to be worth more than $200 million over a four-year cycle. John Thrasher, a former Nike executive and CEO of U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Properties, called JPMorgan “a great partner for us” in an interview with CNBC.
JP Morgan is also a vote of confidence in the organization’s highest level of sponsorship, called Olympic Partners, with exclusive distribution rights. Established in 1985, the program saw several major companies, including Panasonic, Toyota and Bridgestone, exit at the end of 2024.
Thrasher is reforming its business model in order to attract major sponsors. He said organizers have created a joint venture across the various facilities to bring all rights together for commercialization, so companies can pursue one deal across the LA Olympics, Team USA and Paralympics if they wish.
He said he is also trying new marketing opportunities beyond the Games, such as a 100-day extended torch relay through all 50 states and naming rights for many venues.
“We’re trying to balance not over-commercializing the Olympics, which is very important, but also driving revenue to put on better games,” Thrasher said.
JPMorgan’s partnership includes the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games and the 2030 Games in the French Alps.
Last week, the company also announced plans to hire more than 100 additional business bankers across Southern California (an increase of 30%) due to its presence at the LA Games. The company says it already has 5 million consumer banking customers and 589,000 small business customers in Los Angeles.
“We think it’s really important to have an ecosystem in place that supports these small businesses and allows them to take advantage of what’s happening in the business of the Olympics,” said Carla Hassan, chief marketing officer at JPMorgan.
Hassan said the Olympic partnership is a “company-wide commitment” for JPMorgan. He said the company measures return on investment through brand strength, customer engagement, customer acquisition and employee pride.
It’s also the latest move for the company, which has made significant investments in the sports industry, including the areas around New York’s Madison Square Garden and San Francisco’s Chase Center, home to the NBA’s Knicks and Golden State Warriors, respectively.
JPMorgan is also a longtime sponsor of the U.S. Open Tennis Championships in New York, and recently announced a multimillion-dollar deal to sponsor The Ohio State University athletic program. And earlier this year, it launched the Athletes Council, made up of all-star athletes including seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady and World Cup champion Alex Morgan, with the goal of improving financial literacy and asset management among those in the sports industry.
Mr. Hassan said the opportunity to partner with the Olympic and Paralympic Games was unique and attractive because of their international influence.
“There are very few partnerships that are so global in nature, right?” Hassan said. “It really is its own animal.”
