All over the country, business and tourism experts have been paying attention to the economic boost from sports tournaments, camps and training facilities. It’s no different in Northwest Montana, where sports organizations and business partners want to hit a homerun in helping participants make a trip out of their stay.   

Discover Kalispell has narrowed in on the concept of sports tourism over the last several years.  

“We all saw the benefit of the Spartan Race, that’s taken place in Bigfork for a little over a decade ... I think a bit of the focus there is that it became a mainstay for the local economy,” said Discover Kalispell Group Sales Manager Ben Gould.  

The tourism bureau has worked to establish or grow other events like those in fiscal years 2025 and 2026. Gould said they offer marketing support and event grants, which can help cover associated costs for tournaments, like referees, equipment rentals and more.  

It’s money that comes back to the community once the event is established. He said visitors who come for sports-related events create an economic impact with hotel stays and shopping downtown.  

Though some sporting events take place in the summer annually, Discover Kalispell has encouraged organizations to plan events in the shoulder season when there’s more lodging available and to bolster spending at restaurants and retail shops during slower times of the year.  

Even if an event does not return annually, marketing the area as a location for its recreational opportunities may attract some sports tournaments. While players are in town, they will probably want to check out Glacier National Park and Flathead Lake.  

The Glacier Park College Soccer Showcase, an exhibition match between the University of Montana and the Air Force Academy’s women’s soccer teams in Columbia Falls provides that opportunity. The day prior to the showcase, organizers offered clinics for local athletes. 

“It really highlights these sports events’ ability to both garner interest from residents and these higher-profile athletes competing here, but also the fact that our local young athletes can participate in clinics,” Gould said.  

A report by UN Tourism shows the area of sports tourism generates around 10% of the world’s expenditure on tourism. It has an estimated growth rate of 17.5% between 2023-2030, making it one of the fastest growing sectors in tourism, according to the UN. 

Spectator sports tourism generated $47.1 billion in direct spending for a total economic impact of $114.4 billion and supporting 664,860 full-time and part-time jobs across the country, according to a 2024 report by the Sports Events and Tourism Association, a nonprofit trade association. The study conducted by Tourism Economics found that 109.7 million non-local attendees traveled 50 miles or more to attend sporting events last year, resulting in 63.5 million staying overnight.  

More tourists are interested in sport activities as part of their vacation. The Jewel Basin Center and its accompanying Two Rivers Pickleball Club in Bigfork experience travelers stopping by for a game of pickleball. The club boasts 1,800 members, comprised of all ages — but it’s a favorite among the lakeside village’s robust retirement community.  

Founder Jim Lafferty remembers the rush to get the facility ready to host the first Crown of the Continent tournament several years ago. The games drew 243 people to the area. 

Attendees were given surveys asking about their visit— if they stayed in a hotel, how many nights they stayed, and how many times they ate out at a restaurant.  

The local economic impact of the first tournament was estimated at between $150,000 and $175,000. Now that the three-day tournament has grown to include 300 participants the impact is estimated to be even higher.  

 “So, every time we do a big tournament, it’s probably generating around $200,000 of economic impact,” Lafferty said.  

During the fifth annual Crown of the Continent tournament set for August people from 20 states and Canada, and some players from Europe are expected to participate.  

Bigfork is the choice location for many retirees, many of whom love pickleball. When they travel to the area to visit and play pickleball at the Jewel Basin Center, some of them love it so much it makes them want to stay. 

“It’s one of the reasons why we have all these sponsors banners inside — a bunch of them are realtors and banks. They love getting their name out here,” Lafferty said.   

The Two River Pickleball Club also hosts the Summer Classic each year in July, which Lafferty said draws in a more regional crowd of around 90 people.  

A NUMBER of youth sports are in full-swing in the summer — including three tournaments hosted by Lakers Baseball, Mission Valley’s 3-on-3 basketball tournaments held in Plains, Ronan and Bigfork and Glacier Surf Soccer’s Premier Cup and Futsal Championships. 

In late July, Flathead Braves Football hosted the Win the Day camp featuring Flathead High School alumni and former NFL quarterback Brock Osweiler, who worked with the eager fifth- through eighth-grade players.  

A longtime staple for children and teens who want to play soccer and more recently offering recreational adult league programs, the Flathead Valley United has about 3,000 families who participate in its programs each year, according to Executive Director Damion Blackburn. 

FVU hosts several camps and tournaments, the largest of which is the 3BR tournament, formerly known as Three Blind Refs. The massive youth soccer tournament runs the first weekend in June and brings more than 200 teams to the area to compete.  

“We’re very happy that so many teams are coming from different parts of the country. We’ve had teams in from Oregon, Washington, North and South Dakota, Wyoming, Idaho, and then Canada. We have some international groups from Spain and Ireland that have expressed interest,” he said.  

Logan Health is the main sponsor for the tournament, which takes place at Kidsports Complex in Kalispell. FVU also partners with Discover Kalispell to coordinate lodging for attendees.  

This year 300 families used free RV camping at the sports complex during the tournament.  

“We’re kind of running out of space on that one. So, we might have to figure out how we manage that a little differently. But again, we don’t charge anything for them to do that, and it’s a fantastic event,” he said.  

The organization also hosts two camps: the Skills Acquistion Training camp in mid-July and the I.Q. camp, which brings players from all over the region and Canada together in mid-August.  

While it’s a perk that FVU’s events bring hundreds of people to the area, Blackburn said the club’s biggest selling point for its sponsors is being able to provide the opportunity for young people to play soccer. 

“A lot of the sponsors that we work with love that idea, but mainly it’s about creating a pathway for every player, an opportunity in the game. So, from a recreational standpoint, we’ve actually lowered costs every year since I’ve been here for our competitive programming and we are the second most cost effective competitive program in the state of Montana,” he said.  

The club is set to start a capital campaign fundraising to construct a $3 million indoor training facility in Evergreen. The club purchased land in 2021 designated for the 16,800-square-foot building. Not only will the facility be home to the club’s soccer programs, but also serves as a “community center collaboration,” with before and after school programming offered to Evergreen residents.  

“It will be sports tiled so we can play futsal, basketball, pickleball and volleyball, as well as hosting community events,” he said. “The plan is for the sporting space to be approximately the size of three high school basketball courts, side-by-side-by-side.”  

A STUDY looking at the potential economic benefit of indoor sports facilities, commissioned by Discover Kalispell in 2023 calls for a $60 million multi-sport facility to promote off-season tourism and spending in the area. The study, by Florida-based Sports Facility Advisory, says an ideal facility would include four basketball courts, two ice rinks, 6,000 square feet of turf with three batting cages, 2,000 square feet of leasable space, a kitchen and dining area, a physical therapy room, locker rooms and office space. 

The consulting firm found that basketball, volleyball, ice skating, baseball and softball are amongst popular sports in the area that could make use of an indoor sports facility. 

The study found that a small ice event that could host a total of 16 teams could generate a total of 288 room nights, while a large ice event hosting a total of 24 teams could generate a total of 810 room nights during the event.  

The report points out that overnight visitors who come for youth and amateur tournaments and events spend on average $127 per person per day on lodging, dining/groceries, transportation, entertainment and retail.  

Kalispell isn’t alone in its pursuit of a sports and event complex.  

Helena is exploring a $120 million multiplex that would include a swimming pool and sports fields, and double as a concert or event venue. An economic impact study for that project suggests it could bring in $26 million in spending to Helena annually and create more than 300 jobs. The study says the venue would bring in 97,000 visitors each year. 

The multiplex would be paid for through a combination of private donations and a voter-approved bond. 

Missoula opened the 156-acre Fort Missoula Regional Park in 2017 with softball complex and 10 multi-use fields that allow the city to host large tournaments. It was funded through a $42 million bond. 

The Billings Chamber touts the city as the “sports capital of the Treasure State” as regular hosts of high school wrestling and basketball tournaments, as well as hosting collegiate events and Professional Bull Riding tour stops at MetraPark. Billings also welcomes the state Special Olympics Summer Games in May, which brings in 1,000 athletes from across the state. 

Work recently began on a new facility in Billings with two sheets of ice for hockey tournaments, and an indoor court complex is slated to be built next door. 

Whether it comes in the form of a new sports facility or bustling summer tournament, sports tourism is a promising corner of the market, according to Discover Kalispell’s Gould. Other towns similar to Kalispell, semi-rural places not near large urban centers, are trying to attract large, professional sporting events.  

Particularly for Northwest Montana, something called “tourna-cations” can come into play. Gould said the fun term conveys how families and players will travel for tournaments and make an extended stay out of their trip.   

“You get folks that are actually booking for maybe four to five nights when maybe they normally would only book for two or three. This is helps drive folks staying in the area and impact our local economy for a longer period of time,” Gould said.  

The Glacier Country region of Northwest Montana accounted for nearly $2 billion in non-resident travel spending in 2023, by far the most among the six tourism regions in the state. Most of that total was spent at restaurants, followed by fuel and lodging. 

Reporter Taylor Inman may be reached at 758-4440 or [email protected].    

    Mac Roche, Flathead High School's new head football coach, welcomes campers and introduces former NFL and Braves quarterback Brock Osweiler at the start of the Braves' Win the Day Camp at Legends Stadium on Wednesday, July 16. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    Campers run a series of drills at the Braves' Win the Day Camp featuring former NFL and Flathead Braves quarterback Brock Osweiler at Legends Stadium in Kalispell on Wednesday, July 16. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    Former NFL and Flathead Braves quarterback Brock Osweiler runs a drill during the Braves' Win the Day Camp at Legends Stadium in Kalispell on Wednesday, July 16. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    Former NFL and Flathead Braves quarterback Brock Osweiler speaks to campers at the Braves' Win the Day Camp at Legends Stadium in Kalispell on Wednesday, July 16. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    Former NFL and Flathead Braves quarterback Brock Osweiler runs a drill during the Braves' Win the Day Camp at Legends Stadium in Kalispell on Wednesday, July 16. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider