Sports Business Journal Selects Myrtle Beach as Top City for Sporting Events

PICTURED: College and high school athletes participate in an invitational track and field meet held in Myrtle Beach, S.C., which recently made Sports Business Journal’s 2024 list of Top Cities for Sporting Events. Myrtle Beach will host its first-ever NCAA championship track and field event this May.
CREDIT: Visit Myrtle Beach

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C.—The Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce (MBACC) and Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) is pleased to announce Sports Business Journal selected Myrtle Beach as a top city in America to host sporting events. 

Myrtle Beach ranks No. 15 among U.S. cities without a team in a Big Five professional league and is featured in the journal’s March 18 issue. Editors spent six months conducting research on cities that are the most successful at attracting and hosting sports events across professional, collegiate and amateur organizations.

“This accolade is a testament to our unwavering commitment to providing world-class sporting venues, outstanding hospitality and an accommodating, family-friendly atmosphere. The Beach is a place where you can be your best self, no matter your ability, and we look forward to continuing to welcome athletes, teams, fans and families from around the world to experience the best of sports tourism,” said Jonathan Paris, Executive Director of Sports Tourism, Visit Myrtle Beach.

Sports tourism plays a significant part in the region’s economy. The City of Myrtle Beach attributes sports to having a $154 million economic impact to the city in 2022 alone. Over the past four months, the Myrtle Beach Invitational collegiate basketball tournament, the Myrtle Beach Bowl collegiate football game, and the ACL Collegiate Cornhole Championships brought in nearly $7 million dollars in economic impact to the region. Plus, all three events were televised on ESPN’s family of networks, highlighting the destination to viewers.

The city also recently hosted Boost at the Beach, a collegiate esports competition; the Myrtle Beach Collegiate Challenge Spring Break Track Meet; and the Alan Connie Shamrock Invitational Spring Break Track Meet.

This spring, Myrtle Beach will continue to host numerous other athletic practices, tournaments and competitions, including:

• Conference Carolina Track & Field Championships, April 26-27;
• World’s Strongest Man, May 1-5;
• Myrtle Beach Classic PGA TOUR Tournament, May 6-12; and
• NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Myrtle Beach, May 23-25.

“This May, Myrtle Beach will host the first-ever NCAA championship track and field event. While we’ve hosted regional and other qualifier events for the collegiate association before, this is our first official championship sporting event for the NCAA. An estimated 1,000 total athletes – both men and women – are expected from around the country providing for a significant economic impact to the region,” Paris explained.

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About Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau:

Since 1938, the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce (MBACC) has stood as the unified voice of the Grand Strand's business community — serving Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Little River, Loris, Atlantic Beach, Carolina Forest, Conway, Aynor, Socastee, Surfside Beach, Garden City Beach, Murrells Inlet, Litchfield Beach and Pawleys Island. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has awarded MBACC its five-star accreditation — one of only a few chambers in South Carolina to earn this distinction. The Myrtle Beach Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) and its destination marketing arm Visit Myrtle Beach promote tourism through various partnerships and initiatives to advance the economic success of the Grand Strand. For more information, visit MyrtleBeachAreaChamber.com, MyrtleBeachAreaCVB.com and VisitMyrtleBeach.com.