Sports San Diego

What Sports San Diego does

Sports San Diego is a nonprofit quasi-governmental organization operating as San Diego's official sports commission, founded in 1988 and headquartered at 4909 Murphy Canyon Road, Suite 110, San Diego. The organization is legally structured as Sports SD, Inc. dba Sports San Diego (previously referenced as San Diego Bowl Game Association in earlier Terms of Service documents), and is funded in part by the San Diego Tourism Marketing District Corporation using City of San Diego Tourism Marketing District assessment funds.

The organization's core function is attracting and hosting sports events in the San Diego destination. It provides free comprehensive services to event rights holders—including venue and hotel selection, bid and event management oversight, community and government relations including permitting, and marketing and promotion support. Its technology stack is built on third-party SaaS integrations rather than proprietary platforms: aRes Travel powers a white-labeled hotel booking engine at hotels.sportssandiego.org, Rosterfy manages volunteer coordination through the RedCoat Center, Eventbrite handles event ticketing, and Google Analytics tracks site traffic. The organization also produces and owns signature events including the Trust & Will Holiday Bowl (46-year history, held at Snapdragon Stadium), the Rady Children's Invitational men's college basketball tournament, and the California State Games (founded 1988, featuring 17+ summer sports and 3 winter sports).

The business model operates across three revenue streams: Tourism Marketing District assessment funding (primary operational base), event production revenue from signature events (ticket sales, sponsorships), and hotel booking commissions from the aRes Travel-powered platform. The customer base is dual-sided: B2B event rights holders (national governing bodies, event producers, leagues) receive services free of charge as part of host city selection, while B2C sports tourists and event attendees transact through hotel bookings and ticket purchases. Corporate sponsors including Kaiser Permanente, National University, Rady Children's Health, and Marsh McLennan Agency provide partnership revenue and marketing amplification.

Name

Sports San Diego

Legal name

Sports SD, Inc. dba Sports San Diego

Website

https://sportssandiego.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Sports San Diego is a nonprofit organization serving as San Diego's official sports commission, providing free event hosting services to sports event rights holders and producing signature events including the Holiday Bowl, Rady Children's Invitational, and California State Games.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Commission & Event Management

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events without Facilities (711320), Spectator Sports (71121)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Sports Community Relations & Grassroots Program Management (MPAKAKAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Amateur Event & Tournament Organizers (Meets, Invitationals, Opens) (MPAKACAL), Venue-Owned/Operated Event Organizers (In-House Promoters) (MPAKADAI), Community Sports & Recreation Festivals (Fun Runs, Local Games Days) (MPAGAEAN)

Keywords

• Sports event management
• Event hosting services
• Sports commission
• Sports tourism
• Destination marketing

Headquarters

HQ city

San Diego

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Tourism Marketing District Funding: Funded in part by the San Diego Tourism Marketing District Corporation with City of San Diego Tourism Marketing District assessment funds. This serves as the primary operational funding for the sports commission.
2. Event Production: Sports San Diego produces signature events including the Trust & Will Holiday Bowl, Rady Children's Invitational, California State Games, Paddle Out for Life, and Golf Classic. Revenue generated from event operations, ticket sales, and sponsorships.
3. Hotel Booking Commissions: Through their white-labeled hotel booking platform powered by aRes Travel, they facilitate hotel reservations for sports event attendees and tourists visiting San Diego, earning commissions on bookings.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sports San Diego provides free, end-to-end event-hosting services for sports rights holders seeking to bring tournaments and competitions to San Diego, including venue and hotel selection, bid and event management oversight, government relations and permitting, and marketing and promotion. The organization also produces signature events such as the Trust & Will Holiday Bowl, Rady Children's Invitational, and California State Games, and operates a hotel booking and vacation package platform powered by aRes Travel for sports tourists.

Product overview

Sports San Diego is San Diego's official sports commission, operating as a platform that connects event organizers with venues, accommodations, and support services for hosting sports events in the San Diego area. The core offering is a unified event hosting service that includes venue selection, bid management, permitting, and marketing support provided free to event rights holders. The platform encompasses signature events it produces (Rady Children's Invitational, Trust & Will Holiday Bowl, California State Games), a venue directory with over 25 sports facilities, hotel booking powered by aRes Travel, vacation packages bundling attractions, community and corporate partnership programs, and a volunteer management system via Rosterfy. The main website serves as an event calendar and information hub, while the hotels.sportssandiego.org subdomain handles travel bookings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rady Children's Invitational: Rady Children's Invitational - a two-day men's college basketball tournament tipping off Thanksgiving Day
• Trust & Will Holiday Bowl
• California State Games

Products and services

• Event Hosting Services Comprehensive event hosting services for sports tournaments, competitions, and events in San Diego, including venue and hotel selection, bid and event management oversight, community and government relations, permitting, and marketing and promotion. Services are provided free of charge to event rights holders.
• Trust & Will Holiday Bowl Annual college football bowl game held at Snapdragon Stadium in late December or early January, produced by Sports San Diego; SMU won the 46th edition, 24-19 over Arizona, on January 2, 2026.
• Rady Children's Invitational Two-day men's college basketball tournament tipping off Thanksgiving Day, produced by Sports San Diego. The 2026 field features Georgetown, Saint Mary's, Texas, and UCLA.
• California State Games Large-scale annual amateur sports festival founded in 1988, featuring 17+ summer sports and three winter sports each year, produced by Sports San Diego.
• Hotel Booking Services Travel and accommodation booking platform powered by aRes Travel offering San Diego hotel reservations, vacation packages, and attraction tickets for visitors attending San Diego sports events.
• Vacation Packages Bundled hotel and attraction packages including Best of San Diego Adventure Package (SeaWorld, San Diego Zoo, Safari Park, LEGOLAND), San Diego CityPASS packages, and USS Midway bundles, offered through the hotel booking platform.
• Paddle Out for Life Annual charity event held at Kellogg Park in La Jolla, CA, produced by Sports San Diego. Scheduled for August 30, 2026.
• Golf Classic

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 550 lodging options with more than 53,000 rooms available for event attendees
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Kaiser PermanenteflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial partner of Sports San Diego, providing healthcare and wellness association with San Diego sports events.
• National UniversityflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial partner of Sports San Diego, supporting sports events and initiatives in San Diego.
• Rady Children's HealthflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial partner of Sports San Diego, associated with the Rady Children's Invitational tournament.
• Marsh McLennan AgencyflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor of the Sports San Diego Golf Classic, supporting the organization through corporate fundraising events.
• aRes Travel (Advanced Reservation Systems, Inc.)coreTechnology or IntegrationProvides white-labeled hotel booking engine technology for Sports San Diego's hotels.sportssandiego.org platform, enabling hotel reservations, vacation packages, and attraction ticket sales.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Boston Sports Commission (Greater Boston CVB): Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau's sports commission that recruits and hosts major sporting events. Comparable destination sports commission with similar RFP-driven acquisition model.
• LA Sports Council: Los Angeles's official sports commission, providing destination services to event rights holders and producing signature events such as the LA Bowl. Direct comparable in mandate, B2B sports commission model, and California geography.
• Philadelphia Sports Commission (Visit Philadelphia): Greater Philadelphia's sports commission within its DMO, attracting major sporting events to the city. Comparable regional sports commission with similar destination-attraction mandate.
• Visit Phoenix (Experience Matters): Phoenix's destination marketing organization that hosts major sporting events and bowl games. Comparable DMO with active sports-event attraction function in a Sun Belt destination market.
• Charlotte Sports Commission: Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority's sports division that attracts and operates collegiate and amateur sporting events. Comparable destination sports commission with similar RFP and venue-scope services.
• Atlanta Sports Council: Greater Atlanta's official sports commission under the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau, attracting amateur, collegiate, and professional events. Closest direct comparable in structure, mission, and RFP-driven GTM.
• Choose Chicago (Sports): Chicago's destination marketing organization with an active sports vertical hosting major events. Comparable destination-attraction and convention sports bureau model.
• Nashville Sports Council: Middle Tennessee's sports commission responsible for recruiting and hosting marquee events. Comparable in destination-event attraction, bowl-game involvement, and city-backed sports commission structure.
• Greater Houston Sports Association: Houston's nonprofit sports commission that recruits and hosts major sporting events including college bowls and amateur tournaments. Directly comparable nonprofit sports commission with similar signature-event production model.

Broad incumbents

• Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority: Las Vegas's destination marketing authority, a much larger and broader DMO that hosts Super Bowl, NCAA events, and major sports attractions. Comparable function at significantly larger scale and budget.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SportsSDtourism
• Facebookfacebook.com/SportsSanDiego
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sportssandiego

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sports San Diego