This story was updated on September 1 to reflect a change in development.
The Los Angeles City Council announced on Tuesday it would back the city’s bid for hosting the 2024 Olympics, . In a 15-0 vote, the council granted negotiation rights to Mayor Eric Garcetti to formally begin the negotiations process with the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC).
Los Angeles became the lead city to represent the U.S. in its bid for the 2024 Games after USOC-elect Boston, selected in January, dropped out of contention in July due to lack of resident and mayoral support. Concern largely centered around overage costs for the games being the responsibility of the host city.
The , released on August 25, stated that hosting the games would cost a projected $4.6 billion and generate $161 million in profits. Garcetti said that the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the parent organization of the Games, will commit between $1.5 billion and $2 billion to the budget, . He also has said that profit projections are conservative.
“I think it’s much, much more probable that we’ll have a lot of revenue sources that come from [hosting the Olympics] than worrying about the loss,” Garcetti told Los Angeles Daily News prior to the vote.
The USOC must formally confirm Los Angeles as its selection to the IOC by September 15. The city would then join Rome, Hamburg, Paris, and Budapest in contention for host site, with an expected selection in 2017.
UPDATE: September 1, 17:00 MDT: The U.S. Olympic Committee named Los Angeles as the U.S. bid to host the 2024 Olympics on Tuesday afternoon, according to the AP.