Orlando: How theme park city is becoming sporting hotbed
Bidding to host major sports tournaments is no mean feat but Orlando has managed to find itself in the middle of the scrum, they tell City PM.
A football or rugby World Cup doesn’t come around too often. England last hosted the men’s Fifa World Cup in 1966 and is set to stage the women’s equivalent for the first time in 2035. British sports fans are in the midst of the Women’s Rugby World Cup, having hosted the men’s version a decade ago. When these return remains to be seen.
So when the United States embarks on a decade of live sport which includes men’s and women’s football and rugby World Cups, a winter and summer Olympic Games and a number of other global championships, cities need to make sure they’re part of the party.
One of those is Orlando. Famed for its theme parks, Florida’s third most populated city has manoeuvred itself into a bidding powerhouse, leveraging its two stadiums – the 25,500 Inter&Co Stadium used for Major League Soccer and the 60,000 capacity college football Camping World Stadium – as part of a flexible package.
Both of these stadiums were in use at the recent Fifa Club World Cup and Jason Siegel of the Greater Orlando Sports Commission insists an ability to offer multiple venues has helped the organisation do around $550m in business in their most recent year.
Orlando’s decade of bids
“We have bids out through 2035,” he tells City PM. “We won’t win them all, but we’re looking at about $3bn-4bn worth of business over that time.
“[We’re going for the] men’s and women’s Rugby World Cups, Women’s Fifa World Cup in 2031 and we have our eyes on a number of opportunities, including the women’s worlds for volleyball in 2027.
“We’re looking at a number of opportunities leading up to the Olympics in Los Angeles and there might be some business for us leading into Salt Lake City with the Winter Olympics [in 2034] – climate acclimation and all that good stuff – as well as base camps for the Fifa World Cup in 2026.”
Orlando is already partnering with WWE and UFC but the US market is congested – 25 cities including the likes of Denver, Minneapolis and Baltimore have put their names forward for the 2031 men’s Rugby World Cup against Orlando and Florida rival Miami.
Carte blanche
But amid concerns surrounding fan visas for the 2026 Fifa World Cup – where President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda could have an impact on certain countries, such as Iran, who have qualified for the event – Siegel says local government doesn’t get involved with the politics of hosting, but insists backing isn’t “carte blanche”.
“There is a return on investment that is expected,” he adds. “What’s that economic impact for whatever investment our community is going to make? But we are very aware of not only how competitive the environment has become, but also how sophisticated and educated our competitors are.”
Siegel was in Sunderland for the opening match of the Women’s Rugby World Cup last month, and says winning rights for rugby World Cups can capitalise on the sport’s global markets.
“Rugby is clearly an emerging sport here in the United States,” he concludes. “Obviously the English are dominating on the women’s side but the exciting thing for our community is that many of the countries [involved at a World Cup] here in the United States are already key markets for our marketing destination partners.”
Orlando is looking to make a splash against national competitors and state rivals, and their ambitions are clear. It’s very much a case of “come for the theme parks, stay for the footie”, and that could easily chime with visitors.