Writer Laura McFarland is one of the many who plan trips around sports.
"If you believe, like I do, that travel is about people, then sports are the quickest way to make friends and 2get involved in a country's national culture."
Whether traveling to watch or 3take part in a sporting event, including youth or professional, this is big business and growing.
In 2025, the sports 4tourism industry is valued as a more than $707 billion market and expected to nearly 5triple in value by 2032, according to Fortune Business Insights.
"It is a global tourism 6boost because when you go to a city, you just don't go to the event. You book a hotel, you eat at the restaurants, you do a lot more."
Expedia's Melanie Fish says 2026 is 7set to be a medal-winning year for the industry with the Olympics and World Cup 8attracting fans from around the world.
"Just in the Expedia app, fans from England drove searches 9surging to North America, 85 percent; fans from Mexico, more than 200 percent."
Fans and dollars — everyone is trying to 10get in on.
"Even non-host cities are looking at ways that they can 11leverage getting tourists. D.C. is 12pitching and trying to position itself as, 'Hey, take a day trip from Philly to Washington, D.C. Do other things while they're there for the World Cup.' That's going to create more 13economic impact."








