Blog

Josh Akright loves sports. Not only has he found a career in the sports industry, but sports is a hobby of his and his two sons. In his free time, you can find Josh either playing sports or coaching his sons’ travel hockey team.             “Watching my sons have success playing sports and the exhilaration in their faces, that’s my favorite,” said Akright.             Josh is the Vice President at Pse Event Housing and a Sports ETA Mentor. The company handles all the housing details for tournaments and events from beginning to end. As you can imagine, Josh is well versed in event management, but his responsibilities also include acquisitions, business development, fiance, sales and strategy.             “The people are incredible. The highs and lows of the event management business and...

Show a little love to a great charity this Valentine’s week through Sport ETA’s Legacy Fund. The fund raises money for a special organization in the host city of our Symposium each year. This year, we are so excited to be helping KC Blind All-Stars Foundation. This amazing group helps support the needs and dreams of blind and visually impaired youth at the Kansas State School for the Blind and the educators who believe in them.             You may be asking yourself, how can I help? Right now, the Legacy Fund is looking for items to either auction or raffle off during this year’s Symposium on April 20-23 in Kansas City. Donating an item is simple. Start by filling out the donation form here. Note that you can either ship your donated item to the Symposium ahead of time, or ship the item to the winner following the Symposium. For questions, please contact Member Services at info@sportseta.org or 513.281.388...

The Women’s Summit, now in its third year, has continued to grow and shows no signs of slowing down. The education sessions, roundtable topics, volunteer opportunities, and even the social hours have been created based on direct feedback from previous attendees. This conference is intimate and the discussions can get gritty, which is why I like it so much. The speakers vary from our industry peers to national speakers and former athletes. The roundtable conversations will carry over into dinner and the keynote speaker won’t be offended if you raise your hand mid-presentation. Due to its small size and, quite frankly, the fact that it’s all women, we’re able to talk freely about things that affect us differently in the industry. We receive advice from trailblazing women in the industry and can change our perspectives based on the viewpoints of newcomers. While Symposium and 4S are fantastic conferences, the Women’s Summit’s format allows you ...

Now’s your chance to learn how to take your sports organization to the next level. The first Online Sport Management Course for a CSEE Certificate is now open for registration. With a Certified Sports Event Executive Certificate employers will recognize what you’re truly capable of. This is the first scheduled course on the calendar for 2020. With symposiums and summits planned throughout the year. Sports ETA has partnered with The University of Florida Department of Sport Management in the College of Health and Human Performance to bring you a full Online Sport Event Management Course that applies to CSEE credit. The online course will teach 20 topics revolving around event management and overall planning for events. With all the necessary building blocks to raise the ceiling for your sports organization. Registration for the online course will be closing on February 14th. The deadline for turning in coursework and assignments for the Event Management Online Cours...

CINCINNATI (For Immediate Release) – The Board of Directors of Sports Events & Tourism Association (Sports ETA), the leading association for the sports event and tourism industry, today announced the three-year extension of the contract of Al Kidd, President & CEO of the organization. “Under Al’s leadership, our association has seen tremendous successes and we’ve made great strides to be more inclusive to a larger segment of the industry,” said Janis Burke, CEO, Harris County – Houston Sports Authority and Board Chair of Sports ETA. “The Board of Directors and I are pleased to be extending Al’s contract for another three-year period. We have great momentum going into our next phase of the organizational vision and strategy, which the board has spent time developing, and with Al’s leadership at the helm, we feel fully confident that the best is yet to come.” Kidd, who joined the organization in 2017, has led the o...

CINCINNATI (For Immediate Release) – Sports ETA, the leading association for the sport tourism industry, announced the honorees of its inaugural President’s All-Star Awards. The new award, selected by staff, is recognition for support and dedication to Sports ETA and the sports events and tourism industry. Honorees were chosen for the work performed above the normal call of duty and in supporting staff to implement programs and services to the sport tourism industry. The All-Star Team recipients are as follows: Kathy Nelson, President/CEO, Kansas City Sports Commission, for her work on the Branding Committee Matt Dunn, Executive Director, Palm Coast and the Flagler Beaches, for his work on the Branding Committee John Gibbons, Executive Director, Rhode Island Sports Commission, for his work on the 4S Summit Karl Schmitt, President/CEO Louisville Sports Commission, for his work on the Chief Executive Summit Janis Burke, CEO,  Harris County-Hou...

My staff and I are excited about attending the 2020 Sports ETA Symposium on April 20-23 in Kansas City. We are looking for some KC hospitality- the KC BBQ experience, distilleries & craft breweries, and exciting sports scene!   If you haven’t registered for the Symposium yet, here are some important dates for you to mark on your calendar: March 1st - Registration Deadline, Appointments cannot be guaranteed if not registered by March 1, 2020 March 13th - One-on-One Appointment Portal Opens April 3rd - One-on-One Appointment Portal Closes April 10th - Schedules Distributed Don’t delay in registering yourself and others from your organization for the Symposium. The Symposium offers a variety of education sessions, networking opportunities, and appointments with event rights holders. It’s the Sports Tourism Conference to attend in the spring. Will this year’s Symposium be your first? Join us for the First-Time Attendee Orientation on ...

How much are events worth to your destination? That’s a question many sport commissions ask themselves. Knowledge is power and that is where the Event Impact Calculator is useful. The Event Impact Calculator, in partnership with Destinations International, is the most effective way to categorically measure the economic value of a sporting event and the event’s return on investment to local taxes. Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics Company, developed this Sports Module and platform including several sport event types: Youth, Adult Amateur, College Regular Season, College Championship and Professional Sport Events. This tool allows for quantitative analysis and the direct impact of events on businesses, employment, income and taxes. The Event Impact Calculator has proven itself both credible and comprehensive after extensive data input from more than 200 destination organizations. With over 100,000 events analyzed, the program has become an industry standard as s...

Do you know of someone within the sports tourism industry who has given their service to the field for many years? Who has made a positive impact on current and future generations of Sports ETA members? Recognize them with a nomination to the Sports ETA Hall of Fame. The committee is taking nominations until February 1 for the 2020 Class. We encourage nominations from any Sports ETA members. Past Honorees have built a legacy in the industry with their positive impact and contributions through events, marketing campaigns, and web strategies.             Regardless of budget or staff size, we invite organizations of all sizes to participate. Posthumous nominations are also encouraged. We are looking forward to recognizing Sports ETA members that have really stood out above the pack by inducting them into the Hall of Fame, where they will be recognized on the Sports ETA Hall of Fame page or section of the organization's webs...

Bonny Bernat is a Boston fan living in the Winston-Salem area. While she cheers for the Boston Red Sox, she loves bringing sporting events to her community as the Senior Sports and Event Sales Manager at Visit Winston-Salem.  Bonny works on prospecting and proposal development. It’s something Bonny has to do every day to fight for sporting events. “I have found that if I can get a prospective event organizer to Winston-Salem, we stand a really good chance of securing the event,” Bonny said. “I also think our servicing of events is strong; we do not operate with a sports commission so we have to provide as many of the same services that we can, within our limits, to compete with those cities who do.” Building relationships is something Bonny finds important in this industry. It makes for fun experiences. “It always circles back to the relationships and friends I’ve had the fortune of forming,” Bonny added. “Our indus...