2028 Olympic Games begins just three days after Wimbledon in huge scheduling gaffe

Thursday, 23 July 2026 at 23:43

The tennis calendar once again comes under question as the Olympic Games dates for 2208 have been confirmed and for tennis, they will be under the microscope again for the fact that they are playing mere days after Wimbledon and so there will be barely any carry over time.

There will be a mad dash from SW19 to a new time zone in Los Angeles. The ITF announced the dates for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. The competition will begin on the Wednesday after the Championships conclude in London.

Already the North American swing hasn't even started and the Wimbledon finals were nearly two weeks ago. Albeit only really the champions will be affected. By Tuesday, the tournaments will already be whittled down to around eight men and eight women, which means a vast majority of competing Olympic tennis players will be able to get to LA to begin their training.

There will be some changes also which means that the gaffe perhaps isn't as big. The mixed doubles competition will take place over two days with two rounds completed on Day One and the rest the following day. Five days after the opening ceremony, the Mixed Doubles will commence.

How the Olympic tennis tournament works

On Thursday July 20, the 64 player men's and women's singles draw will begin alongside the mixed semis and finals. The 2028 Olympic Games expands from nine to ten days overall and will be held from Wednesday 19 - Friday 28 July 2026.

It will take place on Carson Courts, which is a 20-minute from downtown LA. The facility though has hosted tennis albeit not sanctioned in the form of UTS Los Angeles and has eleven outdoor hard courts. A 10,000-capacity permanent Centre Court; two temporary show courts – Court 1 and Court 2 – and eight outside courts. So perhaps one to be used on tour in future.

2028 Olympics will be starting 3 days (4 for singles) following Wimbledon. Usually tennis is in the 1st week of the Olympics but because of how tight the calendar is it will be in the 2nd week.

Mixed Doubles is being played in the first two days, assumingly going with the US… https://t.co/w7tHrScBox pic.twitter.com/OLgjPvyhKu
— Tennis Updates (@TennisUpdates26) July 23, 2026

Archery, Rugby Sevens, Track Cycling and field hockey are also played in these circumstances. The draw sizes remain the same with 64 players in the men's and women's. Men's and Women's doubles are 32 teams and mixed is 16 teams. Nations can have up to four players in singles, two teams in doubles and one in mixed. Entries will be based on rankings as of 12 June 2028 which is the day after Roland Garros.

Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams have mooted already that perhaps the 2028 Games will be the final time they will play on tour and they will retire there. Whether that happens is another matter.

Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief

Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.

Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.

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