WELCOME TO THE PREMIERE WHERE2PLAY GUIDE

As the sports tourism industry continues to grow, so has the need for facilities to host tournaments and events. While destinations are working to meet the demand, improving existing venues and building new ones, in-depth resources are necessary for planners to find their perfect facility among a wide selection—which is where we come in.

Since 2009, we have chronicled hundreds of destinations and facilities in the annual edition of Sports Planning Guide (SPG) and on SportsPlanningGuide.com. This resource has grown tremendously as well, with our 2023 guide clocking in at nearly 400 pages. That’s a lot of information and we’re proud to have become the nation’s leading resource for sports tournament planners.

Various times we have been asked to provide advice on a particular type of facility or help with comparing fields for specific needs. These are tough decisions facing rights holders and governing bodies, and our aim is to make it easier with the first of three new Where2Play (W2P) guides. This first edition, focusing on soccer and lacrosse, showcases the journalism expertise of our team, profiling over 100 outdoor, multipurpose fields and facilities at destinations across the U.S. and its territories.

Just as this edition will help those tasked with organizing soccer, lacrosse and even other outdoor sports that utilize multipurpose fields, such as rugby, subsequent guides will be produced specifically for baseball and softball as well as indoor facilities for sports like basketball and volleyball.

This is a major step forward for SPG and a natural evolution of our services. We remain committed to providing the most inclusive, accurate and detailed information about America’s leading sports destinations and facilities.

Be safe and play well,

Editorial & Advertising Office

621 Plainfield Road, Suite 406 Willowbrook, IL 60527

P 630.794.0696 • F 630.794.0652 info@ptmgroups.com

Publisher Jeffrey Gayduk jeff@ptmgroups.com

Chief Editor Jason Paha jason@ptmgroups.com

Associate Editor Chris Silbernagel chris@ptmgroups.com

Production Coordinator Kelsey Ledford kelsey@ptmgroups.com

Director, Design & Production Lisa Hede lisa@ptmgroups.com

Send Address Change to: Premier Travel Media 621 Plainfield Road, Suite 406 Willowbrook, IL 60527

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ON THE COVER: Young athlete makes her move to avoid the opposing defense at Dodds Park in Champaign, IL.

Photo courtesy of Visit Champaign County

Christopher D. Silbernagel Associate Editor