Surging Growth in Sports

We have seen some significant growth in sports travel in the Wichita market. Several things have contributed to the growth. The continued growth of youth sports and the changing travel environment have been some of the most impactful factors. We have seen some of the same factors having similar effects on our other markets as well. With the growth, additional issues need to be considered when preparing for sports-related groups.

Perhaps the largest contributing factor in the growth of sports travel and tourism for Wichita has been the addition of larger sporting competition facilities. The facilities have come from both public and private sector investment. Wichita’s Intrust Bank Arena opened in January 2010 and started the draw of larger sports events, including the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Wichita recently replaced our 89-year-old Lawrence Dumont Stadium with the Riverfront Stadium, which opened in April 2021. The new stadium was a key in drawing Minor League Baseball back to Wichita with the addition of the Wichita Wind Surge. Intrust Bank Arena is home to our ECHL Hockey team, the Wichita Thunder. We have several other professional sporting teams, including FC Wichita of League Two of the USL, the Wichita Wizards of Minor League Basketball, the Wichita Sky Kings of The Basketball League, and the Wichita Regulators arena football team. We also host several long-standing sports events, such as the Wichita Open of the PGA’s Korn Ferry Tour, the National Baseball Congress annual tournament, and the Prairie Fire Marathon. The NBC tournament has brought some of the largest names in baseball history into Wichita. Many professional sports teams have worked to have a product that draws larger and more diverse crowds and young fans. Joel Lomurno with the Wichita Thunder discussed the special promotions and concerts they have added during and after the event, which have helped the team draw some of the largest crowds over recent years.

A bigger contributor to sports travel and tourism has been the growth attributed to youth sports groups. Several multi-field and court venues have been built in the Wichita area. We added Wichita Hoops, a venue with 12 high school and college-sized hardwood basketball floors, 14 volleyball courts, and pickleball courts. Wichita Sports Forum holds 6 hardwood basketball courts, 10 volleyball courts, 6 batting cages, and a regulation-sized turf infield. We host the annual MAYB boys’ national basketball finals every year, which welcomes over 900 teams. Two of the local YMCAs have Farha Sports Centers that also provide additional basketball and volleyball courts as well as indoor soccer fields. Genesis Sports Complex has five high school and five college-sized baseball fields and a 10-lane 25-meter competition pool, and Stryker Sports Complex has 11 outdoor all-sports fields and a 112,000 sq ft indoor facility that has been helping to draw large youth tournaments.

New facilities are not the only factor in the increases due to youth sports. We are seeing side effects of the COVID-19. With more people able to work remotely, many parents are traveling with their children’s teams, so we are getting more rooms needed by each team to accommodate the additional travelers. Many teams are also asking hotels to house the team members individually rather than pairing teammates together. Many tournaments are becoming more regional to help avoid excessive air travel, so Midwest states have seen an increase in demand for events. We have also seen non-traditional or new sports, such as Lacrosse and Pickle Ball, drive traffic into Wichita.

To help accommodate the teams, we provide spaces for team gatherings and meals. We also work with the team’s schedule to be prepared for their preferred meal times.

Some issues we have seen increases in are related to some of the travel agencies assisting in booking groups. Our hotels have been experiencing increased requests for higher commissions, higher rebates, and higher demands for complimentary and upgraded rooms. The increase in these demands often drives the rates for teams above the current rates to maintain some type of profit on the rooms. We have also seen travel agencies “high-jack” events and claim to be representing the tournament. They have set aside a large portion of the rooms in the market so the teams would be driven to their company in order to get rooms in the area.

With the increased demand for sports-related travel, Wichita's traditional corporate travel market has become more balanced. The demand increase has helped fill hotels and drive rates over the weekend. We have been trying to add additional days from our teams by promoting our local attractions to help create a “Stay an Extra Day” deal by discounting Thursdays and Sundays for the teams. We provide the teams with information on the local attractions to encourage them to see more of the city during their stay.