Eight Large Conventions Choose Kansas City for Future Years

May 10, 2017

On the heels of the NCAA’s recent award of six sports championships to KC totaling $27 million, Visit KC announced May 10 seven major convention bookings for future years. These groups represent the sports, military, religious, agricultural, multicultural and nonprofit segments. Together, these events will generate a combined total of more than $60 million into the local economy. Economic impact is based upon a combination of attendance and room nights.

These groups represent the sports, military, religious, agricultural, multicultural and nonprofit segments., which manages nearly 300 youth events across the country in baseball, basketball, drift car racing, fast pitch softball and volleyball, selected KC for its Volleyball NIT President’s Day Weekend for multiple years. Starting in 2019, this group brings an estimated 8,500 attendees annually pouring an estimated $24.5 million over the course of five years.

“As with any national-scale event, it makes sense to use Kansas City as a central, crossroads-type location that will ease the travel burden for many of our teams,” said Sean Hardy, executive director of volleyball, Triple Crown Sports. “But more importantly, there’s the manageable cost of air travel to the city and the fact our partner hotels and the Kansas City Convention Center are ideally located to make the event a graceful fit for the hundreds of elite programs we are fortunate to host. When we needed to find another location after our time in Salt Lake City, we found Kansas City to satisfy all of the priorities of our staff and our customers.”

The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. returns to KC in 2022 for its annual convention bringing nearly 10,000 veterans and generating an estimated $10.3 million into the local economy. In 2013, KC secured this group for its July 2018 National Convention, which will coincide with the centennial anniversary of the end of World War I. The last time this group held its convention in KC was 2007.

Other conventions announcing their selection of KC for future years include:

USA Elite Select returns to KC bringing its 2017 World Fastpitch Championships July 10–16, bringing 10,000 attendees generating $7.6 million in economic impact.
National Main Street Center, a nationwide network of programs and local communities intended to encourage preservation-based community revitalization, will hold its annual conference in March 2018, attracting 1,600 attendees with an economic impact of $1.6 million. This is the first time this conference will be held in KC.
Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association, a non-profit war veterans’ organization, brings its National Reunion to KC in May 2019, attracting 1,000 attendees with an economic impact of $1.2 million. The last time the group held their convention in KC was in 1995.
National Baptist Convention, USA is the nation’s oldest and largest African American religious convention with an estimated membership of 7.5 million. This group will hold its National Congress in KC in June 2020, bringing an estimated 20,000 attendees and pouring more than $13 million into the local economy.
National Association of Sports Commissions, the most trusted resource for sports commissions, destination marketing organizations, vendors and sports event owners, will hold its Sports Event Symposium in April 2020, bringing an estimated 1,000 attendees and producing more than $1.1 million in economic impact.
American Angus Association will bring its national convention to KC in November 2020. The group will attract an estimated 1,500 attendees and an economic impact of $1.6 million.

“Nine billion dollars and growing,” said Cori Day, vice president of sales and services. “That’s the investment the city, attractions, hotels and other businesses have surged into our city and Kansas City is getting national attention as a result. Our walkable downtown, streetcar, renovated and new hotels, restaurants and entertainment near the convention center are leveraged in every sales discussion and our overall marketing approach to win more business repositioning Kansas City as a premier convention destination.”