Symposium Recap

Sports ETA members who gathered in person for the first time since 2019 at the annual Symposium hosted in Birmingham, Alabama were treated to southern hospitality, innovative education sessions, and numerous networking opportunities. From October 25-28, more than 700 sports events and tourism industry professionals gathered to hear keynote presentations by Civil Rights Activists Dr. Martha Bouyer and Lisa McNair, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey and Erik Moses, President of Nashville Superspeedway, among many others.

Numerous education programs were offered including the Sports ETA Women’s Summit and the Sports ETA Facilities Summit along with programs focusing on innovation, diversity and inclusion, new revenue models, and new event development.

The Women’s Summit featured a full-day of interactive sessions and panel discussions with the following speakers:

• Missy Betres, ESPN • Tiffany Daniels, Southeastern Conference • Kay Donaldson, Alabama Bass Trail Tournament Series • Linda Logan, Greater Columbus Sports Commission • Christy Thomas, MILO Teas • Stacy Vasquez, formerly of Wounded Warriors

NEW IDEAS

NETWORKING

Thank you to the industry leaders who shared their expertise during the Sports ETA Symposium in the following education programs:

RFPs, Partnerships, and Evaluation, Oh my! The road to advocating for your sports market brand through the event life cycle

• Don Dukemineer, STS, CHSP - Decatur Morgan

County Tourism • Tonia Whatley - Greater Birmingham CVB • Melissa Thompson - Indiana Sports Corp • Brent Nelson - Greater Orlando Sports Commission Moving into Sustainability: Tips, Tricks and Case Studies to leverage the Event Impact Calculator in your destination

• Chris Pike - Tourism Economics • Gen Howard - Louisville Tourism • Josh Dill - Visit Frisco

GUIDANCE

Past, Present, and Future: Approaching 50 Years of Title IX

• Linda Logan, STS - Greater Columbus Sports Commission • Gray W. Williams, STS - Play Greenville NC • Carol Stiff, retired from ESPN College Women’s Basketball

Programming

It Takes a State: Globe Trotting with the World Games 2022

• Jay Kasten - The World Games 2022 • Nick Sellers - The World Games 2022 • Jonathan Porter - The World Games 2022 • David Galbaugh - Greater Birmingham CVB

Tourism Improvement Districts: More Funding for Sports Tourism

• Roxanne Steinhoff - Civitas Advisors • Ray Hoyt - Tulsa Regional Tourism • David Attaway - Placer Valley Tourism

Rev Up the Engines: Industry Power Panel

• Greg Pepitone - Tourism Economics • Michael Shepard - IHG • David Gilbert - Greater Cleveland Sports Commission • Jason Siegel - Greater Orlando Sports Commission • Josh Dill - Visit Frisco • Al Kidd - Sports ETA

Rolling into the Future: The Changing Landscape of Events and How to Position Industry Partners for Greater Success

• Connor Shane - USA Racquetball • Molly Simons - NJCAA • Hank Pivarnik - EventConnect • Daniel Rush - MGM Resorts

Uh Oh! Here Comes the P.C. Police: A Discussion on the Value of Inclusive Language

• Dr. Michelle Allen - University of Alabama Birmingham • Katreshia L. Verett, JD - University of Alabama

Birmingham Athletics

Three new community groups were introduced at the Symposium and they include: College and University Towns, Outdoor Recreation Tourism, and Parks & Recreation. Each group met on the final day of Symposium to discuss key issues for future meetings and share best practices.

Moderated by Mike Price - Greater Lansing Sports Authority

The mission of the College and University Towns is to explore the development of a Community Group dedicated to the unique trends and challenges faced by members working in college or university towns, regardless of size.

Overheard at the meeting… College and university towns are diverse in size and facilities. As we know, the town could have a Division I large state university, a small Division III college, a junior college, or more. This Community Group will help destinations navigate NCAA, NAIA and others rules as changes are made.

One challenge is just waiting for schools’ schedules. Most schedules are released just before the season starts so it’s hard to know what facilities are available. Regular meetings with school athletic officials could help keep communications open because it is a partnership involving facilities, visitors and hotels.

Also, don’t forget college club sports. These clubs also have championships and can bring in participants and families from across the region and in some cases, across the nation.

Moderated by Clay Partain, STS - Visit Salt Lake

This group will serve as a Community Group dedicated to the unique trends and challenges faced by members working in facets of outdoor recreation and tourism, from running or biking events, fishing or kayaking events, or everything in between.

Overheard at the meeting… Outdoor recreation tourism is a new community group that will focus on hiking, camping, sailing, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, orienteering, rock climbing, kayaking, among a growing list of other activities.

By using outdoor resources that are already established (think: national and state parks), outdoor rec can serve as a low-cost tourism driver, capitalizing on visitors and growing the outdoor recreation impact.

It’s important to find local champions of a sport—for example, mountain biking. Utah High School Mountain Biking Association became partners with Salt Lake for events to bring in activities that drew participants from across the state. These sports have passionate followers and can help grow the sport and, in turn, bring in more visitors to participate.

Moderated by J.D. Wood, STS - Dallas Sports Commission

The Community Group is dedicated to the unique trends and challenges faced by members working in facets of parks & recreation.

Overheard at the meeting… Parks and recreation tourism is becoming a growing component of overall sports tourism activity. Parks and recreation departments are increasingly working more with sports commissions and event rights holders, as more people are using outdoor public facilities for sports. In turn, parks and rec is looking for more representation on sports tourism boards and committees to keep communication channels open.

Some local parks and rec groups are working together on the local level to share information and facilities to grow sports tourism. That cooperation should increase from parks and rec groups to local sports organizations to share resources and fields.

Often, parks and rec organizations are hesitant to have out-of-town groups use the local facilities so they don’t create concerns for their local residents. Education is needed to show that both sides can benefit—more sports events can come to the region and increase sports tourism, while parks and rec organizations can add new revenue streams by leasing their fields for a fee.

The best way to grow events is to open the channels of communication between sports commissions and local parks and rec. Many CVBs and sports commissions have dozens of park and recreation jurisdictions in their area. Starting at a grassroots level to build relationships and explain the benefits of partnering with event organizers can lead to a growth in programming.