Guest post written by Cameron Connelly, Content & Research Coordinator, The Sports Facilities Companies.
Hosting sports tournaments and events is a great way to maximize the use of your facility and increase the revenue and economic impact that it generates. But it seems that nearly every youth sports facility is focused primarily on baseball, softball, or basketball. While these sports are popular and successfully bring in large crowds, there are several sports that are growing in popularity and can help your venue achieve its definition of success. And fortunately, these sports can be played within the current layout of your facility.
Volleyball
According to the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFSH) Sports Participation Survey, volleyball is the second most popular sport among high school girls, behind track and field. And although your facility probably already hosts volleyball tournaments, here are a few reasons to host a couple more. Volleyball has a smaller operational footprint than basketball. This means that a facility with 10 basketball courts has room for 20 volleyball courts. With double the courts, comes double the athletes and spectators. And in a survey done by the Aspen Institute’s Project Play, it was found that the sports parents of girls tend to spend $228 more money annually than sports parents of boys.
Cheerleading
Like volleyball, cheerleading is a girl-dominated sport that parents tend to spend more money on when attending competitions. And with some competitions hosting more than 150 teams, cheer events often bring huge crowds of athletes and their families. These large crowds don’t just bring spirit and enthusiasm to your venue, they also bring increased revenue and massive economic impact numbers. And because the cheer community is so close-knit, hosting a cheer event shines a spotlight on your venue that attracts even more cheer event operators to your sports facility. So, as long as your facility has a large open space with plenty of seating, you will be able to attract cheerleaders from all over the country. With some cheer seasons lasting from August to April, you can almost always find a competition to fill an empty time slot on your facility’s event schedule.
Futsal
Futsal is one of the fastest-growing indoor sports in the world right now. It is very similar to soccer but is played with fewer players and is therefore much more fast-paced. The team size and speed of play means that each player gets more ball touches than they would in a soccer game leading to quicker skill development. And because it is so similar to soccer and is played during the soccer off-season, it is a great way for soccer players to practice and improve their skills outside their soccer season. Futsal is primarily played during the summer and winter which means that it can fill any programming gaps that your facility may have after the basketball and volleyball seasons end. The only equipment required to play are the two small goals and a futsal ball which makes for a low startup cost.
If you are looking for ways to increase revenue and economic impact at your facility then consider adding some more volleyball, cheer, and futsal tournaments/competitions to your event schedule. And if you are having difficulty driving revenue and economic impact with your facility and are looking for help, contact us and we can provide you with a performance optimization plan to help your facility perform at the highest level. If you are interested in facility performance optimization or our facility management services, then feel free to give us a call at (727) 474-3845.
