SportsTravel Webinar Discusses 2025 Storylines to Watch

The SportsTravel Webinar titled Trends in Sports-Related Travel, sponsored by Memphis Travel, featured three leaders from across the sports-events industry discussing what organizations need to be aware of in the coming year. Brian Gainor, Melany Hugo and Heidi Weber all had insightful comments on the state of the industry as we continue into 2025.

Gainor is founder and chief executive officer of Gainor Sports, a sponsorship consulting and sports marketing advisory practice. Hugo, director of sports and entertainment at IHG Hotels & Resorts, has been with the company for 17 years. Weber is director of operations for The Open Championship Series and the owner of Revolution Events & Celebrity Cheer and Dance Championships.

All three panelists agree the health of the industry is in good shape and continuing to expand.

“I really think that the industry is rebounding incredibly well coming off of Covid,” Gainor said. “Especially as it relates to bucket list events and properties that are hosting very premium experiences and unique access. We’re finding that people are willing to pay for the things that they really want to go to. They’re getting a little bit more selective — they’re not going to everything — but they’re spending more on the events that they really want to attend.”

The continued explosion of youth sports was a common topic, as all sectors are reporting record revenue when it comes to youth tournaments taking over host cities.

“I feel like we’re just seeing a continuous growth and explosion within the youth sport community in general,” Weber said. “People are desiring to go with their families and all the kids to all the activities. We continue to see it on the cheerleading side of things and I see it mirrored in all the other sports. There’s an excitement to go and travel to the different cities. We’re seeing more and more families travel as full units coming out to the events.”

Youth tournaments expanding from weekend events to events lasting up to four days has been welcomed by the hotel industry.

“When we talk about what room night delivery looks like, it’s not what it once was — it is so much more,” Hugo said. “Some of these tournaments are starting on a Thursday night. They’re finishing up on Sunday and then they go back to school on Monday. So it’s much bigger now than it ever was and I think we internally are working to change that perception that it’s not just these two nights and it’s going to ruin the flow for you.”

How Destinations Can Win the Bid

Another major topic all destinations are trying to master is how to make themselves stand out from the crowd to secure a bid and bring a large event to their city. Gainor says from a sponsorship and events standpoint, cities need to define what they do better than anyone else and what they stand for.

“I think a big thing is brands are looking to invest in partnerships and are looking for less stuff like signage and they want to own a platform. That could be aligning their brand with a big sustainability push, or health and wellness, or women and girls, or a tie to a cause or nonprofit,” Gainor said. “So it’s really important that a lot of the cities and the events really take time to look at what value are they providing to brands and what makes it unique.”

“Obviously when you have activities to offer beyond just the event itself, as an event producer, there’s a huge desire to be able to offer what we call ‘value adds’ to the customer as well,” Weber added. “Because we are asking them to commit quite a bit to participate in these tournaments and having them in our industry. You’re traveling six to eight times a year to major events at major convention centers in cities all over the country.”

Hugo points out from a hotel perspective, it’s important to get to know the people in your community, be an active participant with all the venues and teams and to be entrenched.

“I lead sports and entertainment and the customers are not that different. They really want you to know and understand their business,” Hugo said. “And that is so important because this is their livelihood. It’s not like corporate — I’m not saying corporate’s boring — but on the sport side, people live and breathe this. And you really have to understand your customers, understand the sports that are coming to your market, understand what their needs are and make sure that you are taking the time to present offers that are meaningful to them.”

Looking Ahead to 2026 and Beyond

With the two biggest international sporting events in the world coming to America in the next four years — 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Olympic Summer Games — it’s never too early to plan ahead.

“We’re absolutely preparing for 2025, 2026. We’ve also got LA 2028 to look forward to,” Hugo said. “So there’s a lot of things going on right now and a lot of momentum, especially in the America’s region for us. We’ve never seen so much activity from the sports segment and I know the others are feeling it too.”

Gainor points out the FIFA Club World Cup is coming to America this year, a big lead up to the World Cup in 2026.

“This is such a pivotal moment for so many cities, so many soccer clubs, so many organizations, that it’s been really exciting to see,” he said. “Between the World Cup in ’26 and Olympics in ’28, we have such an incredible moment in time here in America in terms of sport, for both soccer and all the NGBs, to really grow participation interest.”

While the big picture is coming into focus, Weber and her team are seeing explosive growth in the cheerleading and dance sector as more families hit the road for major tournaments and events.

“We’ve had nothing but positive feedback from most places, really wanting to get more involved in the cheerleading and dance side of event production,” Weber said. “We’re having increases in participation in the sport. We’re seeing more events are popping up more frequently, more people are entering into the market and taking a chance to put events on. And that’s a wonderful thing for the growth of the sport and to be able to try new products.”