Power of sports: QC reviews its sports tourism efforts

The power of sports tourism continues to drive the Quad Cities economy. But the competition for sporting events is tough. That means the region needs to continue to improve and update its efforts to attract tournaments and tourists. Those were some of the key messages delivered Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 11, during a Visit Quad Cities […]

The power of sports tourism continues to drive the Quad Cities economy. But the competition for sporting events is tough. That means the region needs to continue to improve and update its efforts to attract tournaments and tourists. Those were some of the key messages delivered Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 11, during a Visit Quad Cities lunch meeting at the new Iron Tee Golf entertainment complex in Bettendorf.

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That “AccelerateVQC: Sports QC Revisiting the Playbook – Sports Tourism in the QC and Beyond” event  looked at sports tourism efforts taking place today, and some of the trends for the future. The meeting’s keynote was offered by Jon Schmieder, CEO and founder of the Huddle Up Group. (That Phoenix, Arizona-based sports consulting firm guided Sports QC in creating a strategic plan in 2019 that laid the foundation for sports tourism growth in the local region.) Mr. Schmieder offered a look how those tourism efforts have improved in the past five years, and praised Visit Quad Cities and its Sports QC office for their work in attracting tournaments and tourists. “They’re not winging it. They are very intentional in what they want to do…. They have a good plan in place,” he told the Quad Cities Regional Business Journal before his presentation to about 75 people in a third-floor meeting room at Iron Tree Golf. Much of his program centered on comparing Quad Cities sports tourism’s current strength with the way it was five years ago. For instance, in a section called “Benchmarking,” Mr. Schmieder reviewed categories such as facilities, destination strength and structures. Five years ago, the region’s overall benchmark score  in those categories was 47. Today, that score has improved to 57. He added that is a good score because the benchmark score for other Midwest cities is 39.3, and the average score for all communities with fewer than 500,000 people is about 39. Dave Herrell, president and CEO of Visit Quad Cities, said that the area’s improving benchmark score is partially due to the new sporting facilities that have been built in the past few years. For instance, the area around the TBK Bank Sports Complex in northern Bettendorf has attracted more development, such as the Iron Tee Golf facility, and a new $14 million sports facility – currently called the Forest Grove Sports Complex – built next door. Even though the Quad Cities region has made great strides to attract sporting events in the past several years, Mr. Schmieder had this message for the audience: “The competition is fierce.” “There are other communities doing a lot of things. … We need to push the envelope to take advantage of sports tourism every day,” said Mr. Herrell after the meeting, which drew tourism leaders, stakeholders and business leaders. Mr. Schmieder also outlined six current national trends for sports tourism. Those include:

• Competition for sporting events has increased.
• Funding has changed for sports facilities.
• There has been improved community alignment with tourism and local users.
• There has been more participation in “silent sports,” such as hiking, cycling, running and swimming.
• Facilities, such as swimming pools and golf courses, continue to be expensive and less attractive for investors.
• Communities are converting tennis courts to pickleball facilities. Mr. Schmieder said pickleball’s popularity continues to grow at a massive rate with the biggest growth rate coming in younger adults in their 20s and 30s. “(The growth) isn’t in old guys like me, with gray hair,” he added.

Pickleball’s growth has been evident in the Quad Cities with a recent announcement that a pro pickleball tournament will be played at the Quad City Tennis Club, 1522 47th Ave., Moline, from Friday through Sunday, Aug. 8-10. The tournament is expected to generate about $1.2 million in revenue for local businesses, attract 600 players, fill 700 area hotel rooms and greatly help the local economy, according to information from Sports QC. When it comes to generating money for the local economy, Mr. Schmieder said girls’ sports and events tend to vastly outshine boys’ sporting tournaments.  He gave this example: Cheerleading events are big money-making events for the economy. On a national level, those cheerleading events tend to attract hundreds of teams to an event; participants will register 164 days before the event, and the average hotel revenue for the events are $366,310. On the other end of the spectrum are basketball tournaments. Those events will attract fewer teams and players, and the average hotel revenue per event is $29,867, according to data presented by the Huddle Up Group CEO. Mr. Herrell said that a top message from the tourism gathering is that sports tourism continues to help the local economy, but more is needed. More resources need to be put into tourism efforts to keep the sporting events coming to the region in the face of fierce competition from other communities. “We have a lot of momentum, and it’s been a great run in the past five years … but we’ve got to move the needle in the next few years,” he added. Joan Kranovich, vice president of business growth and director of Sports QC for Visit Quad Cities, said she hopes the information provided by Mr. Schmieder will help “create a road map for growth” in the Quad Cities. Several members of the audience said they liked what they heard at the event. Matt Russ, an account manager with the TAG ad and marketing agency in Davenport, said he was fascinated to learn about the increasing competitive environment for sporting events. He also said he believes the Quad Cities is on the right track in sports tourism because he constantly hears from friends and colleagues who visit the region because of sports tournaments. “I talk to people from Peoria and they tell me ‘We’re coming up to the Quad Cities for a tournament this weekend.’ I hear that all the time,” he added.