Capital Area Soccer League is expecting a big weekend. Really big.
CASL, Raleigh's largest soccer club, will host CASL visitraleigh.com National Soccer Series Girls Showcase, 'which as far as I can tell is the largest sporting event in Triangle history, based on number of teams,' says Scott Dupree, executive director of the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance, the sports arm of the Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Read: CASL: How the second-largest league in the nation produces millions in tourism revenue
These tournaments are major events in the youth soccer world as college recruiters use them as a way to see hundreds of players in one location. The showcase is for teams with girls ages 15-19.
Consider the projected stats from the Sports Alliance for the Girl's Showcase:
- 440 teams from 34 states
- 1,400 games in three days at 60 fields
- 20,000 total visitors staying in 114 hotels, for 15,000 total hotel room nights
- $4 million in direct visitor spending
Games will be played throughout Wake County, though primarily at CASL's WRAL Soccer Center off Perry Creek Road, just north of I-540 between Capital Boulevard and U.S. Highway 401.
Dupree estimates $4 million in direct economic spending from the tournament. For comparison, hosting a weekend of the NCAA tournament netted $4.2 million for the local economy.
This is the seventh year of the National Soccer Series in which CASL has partnered with the Sports Alliance. The previous high for an individual weekend was when 406 teams descended on Wake County last year at the Girls Showcase. The Boys Showcase will be held Dec. 12-14, the same weekend as the NCAA Men's College Cup at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary.
Jason deBruyn covers The Biopharmaceutical and Health Care industries. Follow him on Twitter @jasondebruyn.
Title : CASL youth soccer tournament to kick $4M into local economy
Description : Capital Area Soccer League is expecting a big weekend. Really big. CASL, Raleigh's largest soccer club, will host CASL visitraleigh.c...