Sadiq Khan hopes the Olympics will return in 14 years under his ambition to turn London into the sporting capital of the world.
The 2012 Games were widely seen as the greatest ever and the mayor believes the environmental case for reusing existing sporting facilities has never been stronger.
On Wednesday he briefly took centre stage at the San Francisco Giants’ stadium when he threw the ceremonial opening pitch, clad in an oversize Giants shirt with his name on the back and wearing a baseball cap.
This followed the announcement that, under a deal orchestrated by City Hall, US league baseball matches will again be played in London from next summer.
When the mayor was introduced to the 21,472 fans during an interval, he received a “modest reception” from the crowd, according to KNBR sports radio station.
Mr Khan was arriving in Los Angeles on Wednesday, which is due to host the Games in 2028, following Paris, which has been selected as the 2024 host city.
It will be the third time that Paris and LA have been host city, equalling London’s record.
The International Olympic Committee is three years away from deciding on the host nation for 2036 but sports fan Mr Khan believes major sporting events can draw tourists to London from across Europe and boost the economy.
He told ITV London: “One of the things I have been making clear during this trip is my aspiration to have London as the sporting capital of the world – not just American football, baseball, boxing, tennis, cricket and so forth, but at some stage we would like the Olympics back as well.
“LA will be hosting the Olympics after Paris, in 2028. LA have now had the Olympics three times, as indeed has London.
“If it’s the case we want to have a world that is green, that is sustainable, but also includes having Olympics that are sustainable – not building stadiums that sit empty but reusing stadiums and facilities that already exist.”
Mr Khan, now on day four of a tourism and trade mission in the US, is due to meet LA mayor Eric Garcetti prior to announcing the next steps in a key social policy pledge, details of which are being kept under wraps until tomorrow.
His trip concludes on Thursday evening after a visit to Universal Pictures in Hollywood and the announcement of a tie-in with the London film industry.
