The Jacksonville Sports Foundation, a new nonprofit organization under the umbrella of Visit Jacksonville, recently launched.
The new foundation will work to attract sporting events of all types and sizes to Jacksonville, including collegiate athletic tournaments, surfing competitions, outdoor endurance races, and large-scale international games. The organization will also work to increase sports-related efforts in Jacksonville, like the headquarters of one of the fastest-growing conferences in college athletics, the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN), moving from Atlanta.
According to a news release, previous efforts to bring in big-time sporting events have been made, but the Jacksonville Sports Foundation will be focused on consistently working together as a community to bring events to Jacksonville year-round, working in partnership with Visit Jacksonville and entities across the city. So far this year, bids have been made to host the AAU Track & Field Primary Nationals & Club Championships, 14 NCAA Division I and Division II tournaments, USA Gymnastics competitions, and various collegiate conference championships.
“The vision for the Jacksonville Sports Foundation is to not only leverage sports tourism to enhance the economic prosperity of Jacksonville but also to expand the appeal of the area,” said Michael Corrigan, president and CEO of Visit Jacksonville. “By doing that we not only attract competitive sports events, but also sports-related entities like the Atlantic Sun Conference, to further the $178 million estimated economic impact that sports had in Jacksonville in 2023 alone.”
The ASUN headquarters announcement is the second major sports-related move to Jacksonville this year. In January, the Amateur Athletic Union announced Jacksonville as the new home of the AAU Track and Field Primary Nationals and Club Championships previously held in Orlando. This year, the event will take place at Hodges Stadium at the University of North Florida on July 7-13.
“I’ve seen first-hand the impact of sports tourism in Jacksonville,” says Donna Deegan, Jacksonville Mayor. “Having an organization dedicated to attracting sports events to Jacksonville is a game changer, and I’m excited to see what the Jacksonville Sports Foundation brings here.”
The foundation is actively seeking partners to help launch the work and volunteers to help carry out its mission. Those interested can visit jacksonvillesportsfoundation.com and complete the online form. As the foundation continues to evolve, its staff will be working in partnership with Visit Jacksonville.
