Visit Greenville, SC a Bustling Year-Round Sports Destination
About Visit Greenville SC
VisitGreenvilleSC is made up of a team of passionate advocates for all the city has to offer. From the Bassmaster Classic to NCAA ® March Madness ® regional rounds, VisitGreenvilleSC is well-versed in hosting a range of events. “Our goal is to create a great experience for players, coaches, and fans in the destination,” the organization shares. We had the opportunity to chat with the team at VisitGreenvilleSC to learn all about sports in Greenville.
Mission Statement
Our goal is to be one of the most talked about sports destinations in the Southeast.
Featured Facilities
MeSA Sports Complex
Greenville County Rec and Carolina Elite Soccer Academy (CESA) have forged a partnership that has allowed the MeSA complex to grow into one of the finest tournament facilities in the Southeast. Today, sixteen first-class fields are supported by family-friendly amenities with ample parking. In all, the venue features 16 rectangular fields, 15 being lit, two concessions, two restroom facilities, and 1,550 paved parking spaces. In addition to hosting regional events, CESA also uses the facility to host thousands of young soccer players with year-round programming. The facility is currently enhancing its fields to accommodate a wider range of sporting events in the coming years, from ultimate frisbee to lacrosse and more. In the coming years, the venue will be converting fields from grass to turf, ultimately expanding to 5 turf fields.
Notable events at the MeSA Sports Complex:
Recently, the USA Youth Soccer’s Southern Regional brought in almost 2,000 competitors per night and 300 teams.
Bon Secours Wellness Arena
“We’re fortunate to have this premier championship level venue right in our own backyard,” VP of Commercial Strategy Jonathan Brashier comments on the arena. Located in the heart of downtown Greenville, the Bon Secours Wellness Arena is an ultramodern, championship-level 15,000-seat sports arena. Recognized as one of the top 50 venues in the world, the $63 million facility is one of the region’s top destinations, offering the ultimate atmosphere for sporting events. In addition to being the home ice for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits hockey team (an affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes and Charlotte Checkers), the Bon Secours Wellness Arena has also hosted mat sports events like martial arts, wrestling, boxing, hockey, cheerleading and dance groups.
Notable events at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena:
2021 USA Taekwondo Regional Tournament; 2021 SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament; 2021 AAU Karate National Championships; 2022 Bassmaster Classic; 2022 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship – Preliminary Round.
Greenville Convention Center
Right outside of downtown, the Greenville Convention Center (GCC) serves as one of the Southeast’s largest and more accommodating facilities. The top-notch flexible venue is perfect for mat events and has hosted USA Gymnastics and the AKC Dog Show. GCC offers 280,000 square feet of flexible event space, providing the perfect backdrop for tradeshows, conventions, conferences and special events. Greenville’s 10,000 hotel rooms are within a 10-minute drive of the convention center.
Notable events at the GCC:
2022 Bassmaster Classic; 2021 NC AAU & SC AAU Gymnastics Championships.
Fluor Field at the West End
Designed as a mini replica of Fenway Park in Boston, Fluor Field at the West End is home to Greenville Drive, High-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Located in the heart of downtown Greenville, the venue makes a truly unique and high-quality backdrop for events of all kinds with seating for up to 7,400 guests. Groups have endless possibilities to design an event in one of the many spaces in the venue, including the field itself, the Rooftop, the 4,000+ sq ft Champions Club, luxury suites and more.
Standout features at Fluor Field:
- The iconic Green Monster with seating for 100 fans
- State-of-the-art HD Daktronics video equipment including a 28’ x 50’ DriveVision video board
- Training rooms with training tables and whirlpools, press rooms, interview rooms, and media workstations exceeding NCAA requirements
- 6’ x 30’ Ribbon Board
- 30ft wide undercover batting cages
- HD marquee signage located at both entry plazas for game promotion
- Uniform field lighting that exceeds MLB baseball facility standards
Sites to See
First and foremost, Downtown Greenville is the heart of the city and the top attraction for visitors, with Falls Park on the Reedy as the centerpiece. Falls Park is the heartbeat of downtown, featuring a one-of-a-kind floating pedestrian bridge spanning rushing waterfalls and 32-acres of pristine green space. Main Street, which is just steps from the park, offers plenty of shopping, unique indoor and outdoor dining, street entertainment, local art and more. “Our downtown is our highlight. It’s family friendly, walkable, there is outdoor dining, and plenty of shopping. You can truly do it all here,” Kelly Nunn, Marketing Manager shares.
Main Street is buzzing with activity every season. From May to October the TD Saturday Market takes place every Saturday and offers local goods. Also from May to October, Greenville Heritage Main Street Fridays is a weekly, family-friendly event with food, drinks and music, and so much more, where a portion of the street is closed for the fun and games. Greenville is magical during the winter months, featuring cheerful experiences ranging from a Poinsettia Christmas Parade to United Community Bank Ice on Main (November-January) and a one-of-a-kind V8 Santa Sleigh ride. Regardless of the season, Greenville is continuously providing locals and visitors alike with a lively experience.
Upcoming Events
2022 Bassmaster Classic – The most prestigious event in sportfishing is returning for the fourth time to Greenville in 2022. The Bassmaster Classic attracts anglers from across the globe in hopes of becoming the Bassmaster Classic champion. The event attracts thousands who come to see this grand celebration of the sport. The 2022 Bassmaster Classic will be hosted in partnership with Visit Anderson CVB, with the competition taking place at Lake Hartwell, the tradeshow at the Greenville Convention Center, and weigh-ins at Bon Secours Wellness Center.
2022 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship – Preliminary Round – On March 18 & 20, 2022, Greenville is set to host the First and Second Rounds of the NCAA ® March Madness ® Tournament! The Road to the Final Four® will be held at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena with three two-game sessions. This is the second time Greenville has hosted this iconic event, the first being in 2017.
2023 SEC Women’s Basketball Championship – Hosted by Southern Conference and Furman University, Greenville will hold the 2023 SEC Women’s Basketball Championship from March 24-27 at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena. This event is yet another testament to Greenville’s incredible sports market and the growth this city will experience for years to come.
Local Festivals
Local events take place 300 days out of the year in Greenville! Here are just a few of the annual events programmed by the City of Greenville:
euphoria Food, Wine and Music Festival – Sept 15-18 2022
Fall for Greenville 2021 Food/Music Festival – Oct 13-16 2022
Gallabrae Scottish Games – May 27-28 2022
BMW Charity Pro-Am – June 9-12 2022
Artisphere – May 6-9 2022
TD Saturday Market – Every Saturday May – October
Greenville Heritage Sound Check presented by Pepsi Zero Sugar – Wednesday evenings April – September
Main Street Fridays presented by Pepsi – Friday evenings July – September
Travel Tips
GSP International Airport, just a 15-minute drive from downtown Greenville, is a central hub offering 100 total daily nonstop flights to 22 airports across the country on 6 carriers – Allegiant, American Airlines, Contour, Delta, Silver, Southwest and United. With easy highway access and a convenient location halfway between Charlotte and Atlanta, it’s simple to ride-share from GSP International Airport to any Greenville hotel. With the proximity of downtown, it’s quick and easy to ride-share around town. Award-winning downtown Greenville is pedestrian-friendly and is only a 15-minute drive from almost all surrounding attractions. For a quaint local experience, the city offers a free trolley on Main Street for visitors to hop on and off around town. For those driving to Greenville, enjoy the luxury of stress-free parking downtown and navigate to shopping, sightseeing and restaurants on foot.
Greenville boasts 10,000 sleeping rooms county-wide at every price point. With almost all national brands represented, there’s a hotel to suit budgets of all sizes. Right outside downtown, youth sports have a plethora of options just a short drive to the lively Main Street area.
Testimonials
SC Athletic Coaches Association
Prospect Select Baseball
USA Karate
Accolades
“America’s Coolest New Weekend City” –Thrillist
“Best Places to Travel in June 2021” –Travel + Leisure
“The 10 Coolest Cities with the Lowest Cost of Living in the U.S.” –Yahoo Lifestyle
“South’s Best Cities on the Rise” –Southern Living
“Best Places to Travel this May 2021” –Conde Nast Traveler
“#1 Friendliest City in the U.S. 2020” –Conde Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards
#5 Best Small City in the U.S. 2021 –Conde Nast Readers’ Choice Awards
“Top Places to Go in the Southeast in 2022” – Fodor’s GO List
“The 50 Best Places to Travel in 2022” –Travel+Leisure
“17 Underrated Travel Destinations in the U.S.” –HuffPost
To learn more about Greenville and plan your next event today, head to their Playeasy profile here!
VisitGreenvilleSC on Social Media:
Visit Greenville SC
Greenville, SC
Jonathan Brashier, Vice President of Commercial Strategy
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