TEAMS Conference & Expo

Did your destination open a new sports venue — or renovate an existing one — this past year? If so, can you make the case for it being the venue of the year?

If so, we'd love to hear from you. Nominations for the SportsTravel Awards are open through July 1, so tell us why your venue deserves to be on the final ballot! Winners will be announced at TEAMS '26 in Birmingham, Alabama.

We also have categories for best events and host city, so get your nominations in while you can for:

🏆 Best Amateur Sports Event
🏆 Best Collegiate Sports Event
🏆 Best Professional Sports Event
🏆 Best New Sports Event
🏆 Best Sports Host City

To nominate, visit here: https://www.teamsconference.com/sportstravel-awards

It's time to pat yourself on the back!

We are accepting nominations for the 2026 SportsTravel Awards. If you've organized, hosted or been involved with an event worth honoring, or if you opened or renovated a significant sports venue — or if you can make the case as the best sports host city — we want to hear from you.

Nominations are being accepted for:

🏆 Best Amateur Sports Event
🏆 Best Collegiate Sports Event
🏆 Best Professional Sports Event
🏆 Best New Sports Event
🏆 Best New or Renovated Sports Venue
🏆 Best Sports Host City

To nominate, tell us what we need to know to make our final ballot. Nominations are due July 1, 2026, with winners announced at the TEAMS Conference & Expo in Birmingham, Alabama, October 26–29, 2026.

To nominate, visit us here: https://www.teamsconference.com/sportstravel-awards

It's time to book your hotel for TEAMS!

Make plans now to stay as close to the action as possibly in our host hotels at The Sheraton Birmingham Hotel and The Westin Birmingham. Our rooms will sell out, so book your hotel rooms today!

TEAMS '26 will be held October 26-29, 2026 in Birmingham, Alabama. We are planning a fantastic week with our hosts at the Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau. Make sure you're staying next to all of it!

For more information and to book your room, visit https://www.teamsconference.com/hotel--travel-information

The window to secure early-bird pricing for the TEAMS Conference & Expo is closing!

With 1,300+ industry leaders, 300+ active RFPs, and $155M in economic value represented, TEAMS is where the business of sports events moves forward.

Tomorrow isn’t just a pricing change—it’s a missed opportunity to get ahead.

Secure your place before April 30.

For more information, visit www.teamsconference.com.

If you were at TEAMS '25 in Columbus, you got a first look at Zach Werenski and Kaillie Armbruster Humphries during our opening general session that served as the start of the USOPC SportsLink program. All Zach did today in Milan was set up the winning goal for USA Hockey in their first men's gold medal since 1980. And all Kaillie did in Cortina was add two more bronze medals to her existing haul of four medals at previous Olympic Games, cementing her legend with USA Bobsled/Skeleton. Congratulations to them both on their incredible performances.

Who will you see at the TEAMS Conference & Expo and SportsLink in Birmingham, Alabama, October 26–29? There's only one way to find out by making plans to be there!

Visit https://www.teamsconference.com for more information and plan to be with us!

Greater Columbus Sports Commission INBirmingham

Photo Jared Wickerham

If you've been to the TEAMS Conference & Expo in recent years, you've been the first to see current and future Olympians as part of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee's SportsLink program, including four that were named today to Team USA for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan Cortina. Congratulations to hockey player Hilary Knight and speedskater Brittany Bowe from TEAMS '22 in Oklahoma City, and bobsledder Kaillie Humphries and hockey player Zachary Werenski from the Columbus Blue Jackets, who were with us last year in Columbus. Good luck at the Games!

Be sure to be with us this year in Birmingham, Alabama, for TEAMS '26! More information can be found here: https://lnkd.in/ekDaweg

Greater Columbus Sports Commission Visit OKC INBirmingham
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Photos by Jared Wickerham

Check the scoreboard! These aren’t projections — they’re final scores. The TEAMS Conference & Expo is where the business of hosting and producing sports events moves from conversation to contract—and the numbers tell the story. At TEAMS '25 last year in Columbus, the sports-event industry came together at scale, creating real opportunity for suppliers, destinations, venues, and partners ready to do business.

According to new projections courtesy of our friends at Playeasy.com, event organizers at TEAMS came in with:

🏐 300 open events for bid
🤼 More than 1 million event visitors associated with those events
💲 A total economic impact of $155 million from active RFPs

If your goal is to connect with decision-makers, pursue active opportunities and position your brand at the center of the sports-event industry, TEAMS is where it happens.

Don’t miss the action as TEAMS ’26 heads to Birmingham, Alabama, October 26 – 29, hosted by the Greater Birmingham Convention & Visitors Bureau.

For more information: 🔗https://www.teamsconference.com

If you were with us at TEAMS ‘22 in Oklahoma City, you’ll remember Olympic speedskater and her inspirational speech during the SportsTravel Awards. Now she’s headed back to the Olympic Winter Games in Milan by qualifying at the Olympic Trials for Team USA in the 1,000 and 1,500 meters. Congratulations Brittany!

If you were with us at TEAMS '22 in Oklahoma City, you'll remember Olympic speedskater Brittany Bowe and her inspirational speech during the SportsTravel Awards. Now she's headed back to the Olympic Winter Games in Milan by qualifying at the Olympic Trials for Team USA in the 1,000 and 1,500 meters. Congratulations Brittany!

Congratulations to TEAMS ‘25 panelist from the on being named to the hockey team for that will compete in the upcoming Milan-Cortina Olympic Winter Games. At TEAMS, Weresnki spoke of his role helping the U.S. win its first world championship in nearly 100 years and his hope of making the team for the 2026 Games.

Photo by