Sports tourism a key topic at state conference in Tampa

Sports tourism among topics at conference in Tampa

As the Bay Area sees record breaking tourism numbers, the Tampa Convention Center is hosting the Florida Governor’s Conference on Tourism. One major focus is sports, with more big events coming to the region in the near future.

TAMPA, Fla. - According to Visit Tampa Bay, Hillsborough County had its best June tourism-wise in history, making more than $5 million. It comes as the Tampa Convention Center hosts Florida’s tourism conference this week.

Local and state leaders are hoping more events on deck for the Tampa Bay Area and the state will break those records.

According to Visit Florida, a little more than 34 million people visited the state in April and June. That’s 1.5 million more than the same time period last year. During the first six months of this year, nearly 75 million people visited Florida.

"We have everything," Dana Young, President and CEO of Visit Florida, said. "We are a fantastic destination for culinary, for adventure, for those beach vacations and, of course, those theme parks are always available for those family travelers."

Most of the travelers, Visit Florida says, came from other states. State leaders hope to increase the number of visitors from abroad to pre-pandemic numbers.

"We are competing, not just against other U.S. states, but we are really competing globally," Young said. "There are a lot of global destinations that offer beautiful beaches and fine cuisine."

READ: Tourism course gives Hillsborough students a chance to enter critical Florida industry

Part of Thursday’s discussion at the state tourism conference will focus on sport tourism. A session Thursday afternoon will cover how to adapt the sport tourism industry to ongoing social and economic trends. Tim Tebow kicked things off Thursday morning at the conference with the keynote address.

Tampa will host the NCAA Women’s Final Four at Amalie Arena next spring. It will be the fourth time the tournament is in Tampa. Last time the city hosted the tournament, in 2019, the tourism board said downtown hotels were close to 100 percent occupancy. They’re hoping for a repeat of that success, and are even more excited because of the increasing interest around women’s basketball, especially after this year’s NCAA tournament, they said.

"The ability to empower young women, and how that translates into our community … We've developed great programs," Santiago Corrado, President and CEO of Visit Tampa Bay, said. "Our sports commission has developed great programs to make sure that there are lasting legacies after every time we host the Women's Final Four and how that event connects with our locals when it's here, because that's really important as well."

READ: Tampa Bay Rays, City of St. Pete sign deal to build new ballpark, keeping team in town for 30 years

The Rays' new stadium is scheduled to open in 2028 in St. Pete, and local leaders say they think that will make the Tampa Bay Area even more of a destination as well.

Across the state, the NFL Pro Bowl will be back in Orlando in February, and Miami will host the college football national championship in 2026.

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