Winning strategy? Tourism industry hopes sporting events can be a game-changer

July 7, 2023

Attracting marquee sporting competitions such as rugby’s Pacific Four Series is the primary goal of the “bid more, win more, host more” strategy, a joint effort between Ottawa Tourism and the City of Ottawa to promote the capital as a world-class event-hosting destination.

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When the Canadian women’s rugby team clashes with world champion New Zealand at TD Place on Saturday night, Lesley Pincombe will be among the most engaged observers in a stadium that’s more accustomed to hosting a different brand of football. Pincombe is eager to see how the fourth-ranked Canadians fare against the rugby powerhouse from Down Under on the opening day of the World Rugby Pacific Four Series, of course. “I can’t wait to attend and see the haka performed at TD Place,” she said earlier this week, referring to the ceremonial Maori war dance that has become a pre-match ritual for New Zealand rugby squads in international competition. “I think it’s going to be a very memorable experience.” But the vice-president of meetings and major events for Ottawa Tourism will also be watching the contest through a business lens. Rugby Canada is expecting a crowd of more than 7,500 to gather at TD Place, which would be the largest audience ever for an international women’s 15s match in this country. The sport’s national governing body is pulling out all the stops to try to make the event, which also includes Australian and U.S. national women’s teams, a rousing success. Tickets were priced at a reasonable $20, and Rugby Canada ran a promotion offering a free child’s ticket with the purchase of a ticket for an accompanying parent or adult for Saturday night’s game. The Canada-New Zealand match follows a game between Australia and the U.S. on Saturday afternoon at TD Place. The series concludes on July 14 at the same venue when the Americans take on the Kiwis and Canada tussles with Australia. Organizers predict the event – which also includes under-20 women’s teams from Canada, the U.S. and Wales and features more than 230 players – will pump more than $3.3 million into the local economy, with participants and team staff expected to book more than 1,600 total hotel room nights.

'It sets a great example'

Pincombe is hoping the prospect of record-breaking crowds will entice Rugby Canada to return to the nation’s capital for future events. “It sets a great example for Rugby Canada to then go to World Rugby to say, ‘What more can we do together?’ And we’ll be right there at the table to help with that relationship and see what else we can bring to the city.” Attracting marquee sporting competitions such as the Pacific Four Series is the primary goal of the “bid more, win more, host more” strategy, a joint effort between Ottawa Tourism and the City of Ottawa to promote the capital as a world-class event-hosting destination. Those efforts appear to be changing the game for a city in which tourism is the third-largest industry after government and tech. Ottawa Tourism says sport-related visitors contributed more than $300 million to the city’s economy in 2019, before the pandemic dealt the sector a crippling body blow. Now, live sporting events are back with a vengeance, and the National Capital Region is reaping the rewards. With hometown hero Brooke Henderson as a five-star drawing card, last summer’s CP Women’s Open at the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club turned into the most successful event in the tournament’s history, attracting more than 75,000 spectators and generating an estimated $13 million worth of economic spinoffs for local businesses. TD Place arena staged another big winner this spring, when the world men’s curling championship also hosted more than 75,000 total fans and pumped an additional $12 million into Ottawa’s economy. But even those numbers will likely soon be dwarfed by the city’s biggest sports event win of the past few years. Last month, the International Ice Hockey Federation announced Ottawa would host the 2025 world junior hockey championship, which will be held at the Canadian Tire Centre and TD Place. Based on studies from other Canadian cities that have recently hosted junior hockey’s biggest international showcase, Ottawa Tourism expects the tournament to produce an economic windfall of more than $50 million for the region.

Untapped potential

Still, Pincombe believes the city still hasn’t fully realized its potential when it comes to hosting big-time sporting events. She’d like to see organizers become more inclusive – and creative – when casting a net for potential opportunities. As an example, she points out that in 2020, the Pan-American wrestling championships were staged at the Shaw Centre – hardly the first venue that springs to mind for hosting an athletic competition. But the bouts went off without a hitch, leading Pincombe to wonder what other hidden gems might be lurking among Ottawa’s event facilities. “I think we have to work with the infrastructure that we have in the city,” she said. “We’re really looking at which other sports we can host with our current infrastructure and just being a little bit more strategic.” And with TD Place expected to undergo a major renovation in the next few years and the possibility of a new downtown NHL arena tantalizing local sports fans, Pincombe says making sure that such facilities are fully accessible to athletes with disabilities could pave the way for Ottawa to become a go-to destination for parasport competitions. “We have a real opportunity when we build new (facilities) to do things right and to learn from other cities,” she said. “That’s a niche market that Ottawa would love to be a leader in. Those are the types of events that we want to do more of.” – With files from the Canadian Press