While softball fans are cautiously optimistic for the inclusion of softball in the 2020 Olympic games in Tokyo, Japan, they may have more Olympic news to celebrate.

The LA Times reported August 29 that the city of Los Angeles and the U.S. Olympic Committee reached an unofficial agreement for Los Angeles to serve as the United State’s bid for the 2024 Olympic games.

The good news for softball fans is that the city’s plan includes both softball and baseball at Dodger Stadium, which would be in the downtown cluster of sports. The proposal includes five clusters of venues that would house 94 percent of the sports, all within 30 minutes of the Olympic Village.

Los Angeles came to the table late with its bid, becoming the favorite after Boston dropped its bid July 27. Both San Francisco and Washington D.C. were other finalists for the U.S. bid. The bid can become official as early as Tuesday, September 1 when the Los Angeles City Council votes to approve the bid.

Los Angeles has played host to two Olympic games, 1932 and 1984. A third would make Los Angeles the second city ever to host three Olympics, with London being the first (1908, 1948, and 2012).

Softball joined the Summer Olympic sport program for the 1996 Atlanta games and only saw four Olympiads before being dropped after the 2008 Beijing games. The removal of both softball and baseball from the Olympic program for the 2012 London games was the first time in 69 years that a sport had been dropped.

In 2011, softball and baseball prepared a joint bid to revive their status as a Summer Olympic sport and receive full medal status. Many fans and athletes of both sports are optimistic for their inclusion in the 2020 games given the popularity of both in the host city of Tokyo.

Both regional interest and disparity of talent are widely believed to be the primary reasons for the removal of softball and baseball from the games. The two sports hold strong bases of support in North and South America and East Asia but lack interest in Europe where the IOC holds much of its influence. Of the four Olympic games in which softball was included, the United States won three gold medals and a silver medal in Beijing behind Japan’s gold medal win.

With 2020 slated for Tokyo and the lure of Dodger Stadium for the 2024 Olympics, softball fans and players may very well have Olympic softball to look forward to in the next five to ten years. Go USA!

The official LA2024 bid book can be seen here.