Delaware conducted its first study on how sports tourism affects the local and state economy. (Photo from DE Turf)
WILMINGTON – Sports tourism in Delaware is thriving, with a total economic impact of $403.2 million on the state last year.
In the first study of its kind, the Delaware Tourism Office released a report Friday that showed 1.1 million out-of-state visitors attended an event as a participant or spectator throughout the state in 2023.
But how the state arrived at those numbers is more than a bit confusing, and likely reflects an impact that’s well below the actual figure because of who was excluded from the total..
The survey conducted by Wayne, PA-based Tourism Economics estimated $250 million in spending that generated $403.2 million in total business sales. In addition, sports tourism also generated a $47.4 million impact on federal, state, and local government revenue in 2023, driven primarily by taxes, said Tourism Economics Associate Director Greg Pepitone.
At the report release event, Pepitone said its study of sport tourism was confined to adult and youth amateur events and collegiate tournaments. That means the study excluded professional sports, collegiate regular season games, and spending by local athletes and their families.
The study focused on sports tourism, which only includes events that are being attracted to the state by Convention and Visitor Bureaus/sports commissions/event operators, said Jessica Welch, director of the tourism office.
“UD, DSU, Blue Rocks, and Blue Coats are tenants and will continue to play in the local community” with or without those agencies’ and venues’ efforts, she said.
She said the study includes tournaments that have local participants, but local teams are excluded from the impact analysis as it focuses on the spending generated by non-local participants and spectators only.
Bill Sullivan, managing director of the Courtyard Newark at the University of Delaware, said he’s surprised the study excluded some of those prominent teams. However, he suspects it was mainly to highlight youth sports.
He said it’s more good news that the study showed such a great economic impact even without teams like the Blue Coats and Blue Rocks, who bring in visiting fans and athletes from out of state who stay at hotels and spend money at restaurants and shops.
The same can be said about out-of-state alumni of schools like the University of Delaware and Delaware State University, and about local fans who head to neighboring restaurants and retailers before or after a game.
Given the venue exclusions of the study, Sullivan thinks the economic impact of sports tourism is actually higher than the report suggests.
“I see a lot of success in this marketplace because, despite the pandemic and the economy, parents continue to travel,” he said. “They’re very loyal with their young people, and they’re looking for them to develop and become high school and college athletes, so it’s a real positive for Delaware, and our location is so perfect.”
Of the 1.1 million sports travelers, 56% were day visitors, while 44% stayed overnight.
The press conference did not address whether turning day visitors into overnight visitors is a priority.
The study included collegiate tournaments held in Delaware in 2023, but it did not include collegiate regular season games.
It included travelers who came 50 or more miles to participate or spectate at a sports facility.
“We received data from sports venues and hotels that provided insights on participant and spectator volume and origin,” she said, explaining how those who traveled less than 50 miles were excluded from the report. “We also received data from [Toronto, Ontario-based] Longwoods International regarding sports traveler volume and origin.”
New Castle County had 453,400 travelers, followed by Sussex with 381,200 and Kent with 312,600.
The spending included purchases at sports venues and off-site establishments in Delaware like restaurants, hotels, retailers, and recreation/entertainment venues.
The largest sector of generated income was food and beverages at $73.2 million, followed by $44.3 million on lodging, $43.8 million in retail, $41.5 million on recreation, $28.6 million on local transportation, and $26.5 million on tournament operations, which includes payments by the venues to vendors.
Here’s the breakdowns of spending by county:
Welch said the economic impact was more than she expected, and that Delaware needs to continue to hold a share of the $128 billion national economic impact of sports tourism.
“There is no question Milford benefits from sports tourism,” Jo Schmeiser, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Milford, said. “Our hotels, restaurants, and shops see many visitors who are here for a sporting event. We look forward to seeing the continued growth of sports tourism throughout our state and especially in the greater Milford area.”
Terry Rogers from our sister publication Milford Live contributed to this story.
Raised in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, Jarek earned a B.A. in journalism and a B.A. in political science from Temple University in 2021. After running CNN’s Michael Smerconish’s YouTube channel, Jarek became a reporter for the Bucks County Herald before joining Delaware LIVE News.
Welch said the economic impact was more than she expected, and that Delaware needs to continue to hold a share of the $128 billion national economic impact of sports tourism.
