SEMINOLE COUNTY’S SPORTS TOURISM HIT A HOME RUN IN 2018
Sporting Events Bringing Visitors and Economic Impact to Seminole County
SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. (January 2, 2019) – Athletic events have always brought people together to cheer on their favorite teams. Even those who wouldn’t typically describe themselves as sports enthusiasts enjoy the spirited camaraderie of competitive entertainment. Thanks to the four major tournament facilities in Orlando North/Seminole County, sports tourism has become one of the destination’s most lucrative draws.
The county’s top sports tournament venues consist of:
- Boombah Sports Complex Seminole County (15 fields)
- Boombah Soldiers Creek Park (6 premier girls fast-pitch softball fields)
- Sylvan Lake Park (6 soccer fields, 9 tennis courts)
- Sanlando Park (25 tennis courts)
In recently closed fiscal year 2017/2018, the county hosted a grand total of 108 youth, collegiate and amateur sporting events that generated more than 34,000 hotel room nights and resulted in a substantial economic impact. The economic impact endures long after the final whistle blows and teams with their families celebrate their wins over dinner at a wide variety of visitor entertainment venues. During the 2017/18 fiscal year alone, the county’s sporting arenas actualized an economic impact of $39,636,651.00, exceeding the projected total by $3,886,529.00. Seminole County Parks hosted everything from ECNL national youth soccer championships, to NHFCA woman’s national field hockey showcase, to the All-American youth baseball and softball games.
Seminole County has just finished hosting the ECNL Boys Soccer tournament that took place on December 29-31, 2018, and is projected to generate more than 2,100 room nights for an economic impact of $1,960,547.00. During the event more than 165 teams played at the Seminole Soccer Complex and Sylvan Lake Park, providing a strong initial boost for the county’s 2018/19 fiscal year.
The Orlando North/Seminole County Sports Tourism team has worked diligently with Seminole County Leisure Services and its partners the Greater Orlando Sports Commission to form a strong team to help fortify the local economy by hosting sporting events that bring in visitors to the destination. In doing so, hoteliers, local tourist attractions and restaurants are seeing a healthy increase in revenue from traveling athletes and their families, coaches, scouts and spectators when these events take place.
Since the Boombah Sports Complex opened in fiscal year 2015/16, the county has hosted an overarching total of 146 events there alone, bringing in more than 350,000 visitors to the complex which has generated nearly $54 million dollars in economic impact over the past 2 ½ years. In the upcoming 2018-2019 fiscal year, these numbers are projected to increase even more, with an anticipated 100+ sports tournaments at the Complex and various Parks countywide contributing to an estimated economic impact of more than $48 million dollars.
A schedule of sports tournament events for 2019 is available here.
For more information about Seminole County and its game changing sports venues, please call 407-665-2902 or visit www.PlayOrlandoNorth.com.
About Orlando North, Seminole County:
Teeming with old Florida charm and young Florida vibrancy, Orlando North, Seminole County serves up nationally-recognized venues for youth, collegiate and amateur sports tournaments, along with nature-based recreation, eclectic dining, a booming micro brew scene, plus a year round calendar of festivals, events and sports tournaments. With over 2,000 waterways, visitors discover a wide array of thrilling outdoor pursuits from paddling in clear freshwater springs and rivers, to air boating among alligators, or zooming through an aerial zip line course. Recipient of the 2018 Excellence in Sports Tourism Award from the Florida Parks and Recreation Association, Seminole County proudly presents an array of sports and training facilities for amateur tournament play, including the 102-acre Boombah Sports Complex at Seminole County in Sanford. And getting here is easy via Orlando Sanford International Airport (SFB), Orlando International Airport (MCO), aboard the Amtrak Auto Train, or via auto on I-95 and I-4. Here overnight guests save 30% on accommodations compared to Orlando and nearby beachfront hotels. All this, and it’s less than an hour’s drive to area theme parks and beaches. 1-800-800-7832 or 407-665-2900 or visit: www.PlayOrlandoNorth.com