Sports is a big money-making business. Players make money, owners make money, and cities make money from hosting sporting events which bring in tourists and additional revenue.
Which is why the city of Ogden, and the Ogden Pickleball Association, is especially excited about the future of hosting a series of nationally-known events on the city’s courts at Mount Ogden Park.
The Dennis Forbes Memorial tournament, along with a coinciding Tournament of Champions, gets under way on Thursday, and the expectations are the tournament will provide a boost to tourist-based revenue streams in the city for the weekend.
Tourism is a large part of Utah’s annual economic production. According to the St. George Area Convention and Tourism Office, Washington County, which hosts events like the St. George Marathon, the Huntsman World Senior Games and an Ironman event, earned nearly $418 million in 2011.
Weber County, according to the Utah Office of Tourism, contributed over $3.5 million in restaurant and hotel taxes in 2012.
Additionally, over 120,000 employees in the state owe their jobs to tourism-related activities.
Thus, holding events can translate into big money for the cities which host them, and the business owners which operate in those cities. Standard Examiner
