Sarasota’s Perfect Pitch
America’s favorite pastime has teamed up with Sarasota to help fund an important chamber program. The Baltimore Orioles organization has pledged $150,000 to Sarasota Tomorrow Next, the Greater Sarasota...
View ArticleNathan Benderson Park
The question is: Will Nathan Benderson Park serve as the host venue for the 2017 World Rowing Championship? The official decision between Sarasota and Bulgaria won’t come from the International...
View ArticleSoccer Vote Nets Stadium
There hasn’t been this kind of buzz for soccer since the 1994 World Cup matches in Orlando. Except this time it will have a larger economic impact. When the Orange County Board of Commissioners...
View ArticleOrlando’s Citrus Bowl shows that glamour still counts
That’s not to say that major team sports aren’t important. Home to nine major professional league teams already, the state will add a 10th in 2015 when an Orlando franchise joins Major League Soccer....
View ArticleUCF’s Fie$ta
J.J. Worten’s miraculous one-handed catch against Temple University meant millions of dollars to the University of Central Florida brand. So did Will Stanback’s crushing tackle to cause a game-winning...
View ArticleScrimmaging for the Sports Dollar
The emphasis on sports and sporting events at all levels obviously has been great for Florida’s economy, but everyone involved in the intersection of sports and economic development is aware the...
View ArticleGatorade: Sweat, blood and dreams for the iconic drink
Take $46 worth of supplies, dehydrated University of Florida football players and a brilliant doctor and his team, mix together and you have the formula for Gatorade. The iconic sports drink now enjoys...
View Article2017 College football champions will come from Tampa
A bold prediction: In 2017 the national champion of college football will emerge from Tampa Bay. The University of South Florida Bulls? Maybe, but it will happen for sure. That’s because the 2017...
View ArticleWrestlers in School
The unlikely partnership of Full Sail University and World Wrestling Entertainment is proving to be a perfect match. A few years ago, Full Sail University in Winter Park sought to further build its...
View ArticlePlay Ball! The sports economic impact is a win for all
The sports economic impact in the Super Region results in billions of dollars. That’s quite a score. In May 1957, as Brooklyn’s beloved Dodgers and their crosstown rivals, the New York Giants, began to...
View ArticleHome Field Advantage for Florida’s Sports Economic Development
An annual rite of passage, spring training attracts visitors and dollars. Editor’s Note: This is the debut of Forward Florida’s new feature focusing on the business of sports and its impact on economic...
View ArticleCrunch Time
The project was never a slam dunk. Urban renewal seldom is. However, in a back-and-forth contest that still isn’t over, the Orlando Magic pulled out a small victory. In late January, the Orlando city...
View ArticleMoney Ball | Florida’s Sport Economy
Sports’ Economic Impact Grows. John Webb has proven quite the forecaster. When asked last year about the $36 billion economic impact that sports and recreation has on the state’s economy, the president...
View ArticleDAYTONA Rising and ONE Daytona invest in Volusia County’s Future
Opened in 1959, the Daytona International Speedway introduced the fastest speedway for stock cars of its time. The track featured high-bank turns that allowed greater speeds than ever before and...
View ArticleAmateur Athletes Compete at Sunshine State Games
Call it the Olympics Light. And this torch burns throughout the year. The 2014 Sunshine State Games, which celebrates their 35th anniversary this year, are the longest continuously running state...
View ArticleStetson Football: Economic Touchdown
The decision to bring back Stetson Hatter football has scored big for both the university and the local community. When Stetson University took to the football field in fall 2013, it marked the...
View ArticleWorld Cup Soccer in Orlando
Orlando City Soccer’s new stadium shows the (World) Cup spills over in Florida and across the region. The Orlando City Soccer Club in mid-June unveiled the artist’s rendering of the team’s new stadium....
View ArticleJacksonville Scores Blake Bortles
Former UCF star quarterback Blake Bortles, the No. 3 overall pick in May’s National Football League Draft, signed a four-year contract worth $20.65 million (including a $13.34 million signing bonus)....
View ArticleAcademics vs. Athletics: Shining the Spotlight on Incentives
Shining the spotlight on incentives for college coaches and athletic directors reveals more than winning and losing. This has been quite a summer of change for the National Collegiate Athletic...
View ArticleFlorida Football: Pigskin Paydirt
Florida’s college football programs bring big bucks to their local communities. The fact that major college football and basketball have become “big business” isn’t exactly news. The proof is in the...
View ArticleStetson Baseball Wins Big
Stetson University began fielding a baseball team in 1895, but could there possibly have been a better week for the Hatters than this past one? First, Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom, who played shortstop...
View ArticleBowled Over
Florida’s Bowl Games put up big numbers and the newest one has a special purpose. Cure Bowl. Some decry the ever-expanding number of college football bowl games, while others point to the economic...
View ArticleMarch Madness Is Back in Orlando
Get ready to cue up the bands … and the cash registers. March Madness is returning to downtown Orlando, with college hoops and retail hopes in the air. The City of Orlando and Amway Center were awarded...
View ArticleTouchdown, Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium
There was pomp and circumstance, sheer elation, sighs of relief and chills. Well, maybe those were from the unseasonably low-40s morning weather. Following 10 months of construction activity that would...
View ArticleHats Off!
Two Stetson Hatters Baseball Alums Win Coveted MLB Awards Consider for a moment college baseball’s most prestigious programs: USC, LSU, Texas, Arizona State, Cal State Fullerton and Miami. Between...
View ArticleDriving for Dollars
Speedweeks is pumping big dollars into the fuel tank of Florida tourism. The post Driving for Dollars appeared first on FORWARD Florida.
View ArticleSpring Training 2015
Spring training has become big business. A battle is growing over the economic spoils. The post Spring Training 2015 appeared first on FORWARD Florida.
View ArticleOrlando City Soccer
Observations of an aspiring Orlando soccer fan. Some lessons take time to sink in, and so goes my understanding of soccer. Its faithful take pride in its elegance – after all it’s called the beautiful...
View ArticleIrishman Rory McIlroy takes first swing at Arnold Palmer Invitational
It only seems fitting that on the very week in which everyone in Central Florida is Irish for a day, one of the world’s most well-known Irishmen pays a visit. No. 1 ranked golfer Rory McIlroy is making...
View ArticleTampa Bay Rays Future?
They’re not Les Rayons yet. Despite talk that began surfacing last fall about the Tampa Bay Rays moving, possibly to Montreal, the Rays will open the 2015 season at Tropicana Field on April 6, and St....
View ArticleIf You Build It…
Florida is poised for a major investment in sports facilities. ORLANDO CITY’S STADIUM Orlando City Soccer has taken the traditional professional sports team playbook and torn it to shreds. Rather than...
View ArticleDaytona Rising Expected to Drive Revenue
The roar of engines―and ring of cash registers―returns to Daytona International Speedway with the July 5 running of the Coke Zero 400. And as the economy sputters up to speed, NASCAR’s revenues may...
View ArticleFlorida’s Daniel Murphy Stays Hot in NLCS
Murphy's Law has taken on a whole new meaning. The post Florida’s Daniel Murphy Stays Hot in NLCS appeared first on FORWARD Florida.
View ArticleRoyalties and Rivalries
Good luck this season. Be sure to hate responsibly. The post Royalties and Rivalries appeared first on FORWARD Florida.
View ArticleFlorida’s Spring Training Bonanza
Baseball’s Annual Ritual Generates Millions for the State On Tuesday (March 1), the new year began for those who live by the baseball calendar, as major league teams squared off against each other for...
View ArticleNew Seminole County Sports Complex Kick-Starts Local Economy
It was a lucky Friday the 13th of May with the grand opening of the $27 million Seminole County Sports Complex in Sanford. The offerings of the complex are vast, boasting 102 acres of land and 15...
View ArticleInvictus Warriors Come to Florida
Too often the “impact” of sporting events is measured purely in economic terms. With the 2nd Invictus Games, slated for this Sunday (May 8) through May 12 at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports at Disney World...
View ArticleSuper Bowl, a Record and Big Bucks Return to Florida
The Super Bowl is heading to South Florida in 2020. The region is expected to score big in economic impact. The post Super Bowl, a Record and Big Bucks Return to Florida appeared first on FORWARD...
View ArticleBig 12 Expansion Hopes for UCF and USF
Discussion of the Big 12 Conference’s likely expansion – and what it might mean for the University of Central Florida and the University of South Florida – bring two conversations to mind. The first...
View ArticleThe Big 12, Florida and Television
In the first of our stories on the Big 12 Conference’s potential expansion and the possibility of the University of Central Florida or the University of South Florida joining the conference, we...
View ArticleFlorida-Tennesse Rivalry: Showtime
When Florida takes the field in Knoxville later today against Tennessee, there will be an urgency surrounding the game not seen in nearly 20 years. That’s in part because the Volunteers, after several...
View ArticleWith Big 12, Florida May Get Last Laugh
Big 12 expansion hopes dashed, but Florida schools may have the last laugh. The post With Big 12, Florida May Get Last Laugh appeared first on FORWARD Florida.
View ArticleMiami’s Orange Bowl – The 10 Best (Revised)
Before the CapitalOne Orange Bowl kicked off yesterday we wrote: “Tonight’s matchup between traditional powerhouses Michigan and Florida State continues this rich tradition. A national championship...
View ArticleOrlando’s Pro Bowl: New Life or Last Gasp?
The Pro Bowl comes to Orlando tomorrow, amid some uncertainty about whether this will be the beginning of a great new relationship between the city and the National Football League or the final effort...
View ArticleFlorida’s FIRST Baseball All-Star Game
Economists might disagree with our reasoning, but – at least as far as Marlins Park in Miami is concerned – the debate about public funding of sports stadiums should be settled. It’s a great thing – at...
View ArticleTrump, the USFL and Florida
When President Trump on Friday (Sept. 22) decided to use an Alabama campaign rally to lambast NFL players who didn’t stand for the national anthem, NFL owners who didn’t fire those players and the...
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