Winners of the 2017 SportsTravel Awards Announced at TEAMS ’17 in Orlando

The 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship in Tampa, Florida, takes top honor at the SportsTravel Awards.

SportsTravel announced the winners of the 2017 SportsTravel Awards at a gala event during the TEAMS ’17 Conference & Expo in Orlando Tuesday evening. TEAMS: Travel, Events And Management in Sports, is the world’s largest gathering of event organizers and travel planners from the sports industry. Held at the Hard Rock Live Orlando, the awards ceremony was emceed by Mike Hill of Fox Sports and featured musical entertainment by Tito Puente Jr. and his Latin Jazz Ensemble. The National Congress of State Games also announced the winners of its Athlete of the Year awards during the gala.

The 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship featuring Clemson vs. Alabama in Tampa, Florida, was named Sports Event of the Year, as well as Best Collegiate Single-Sport Event. Other winners were the 2017 AAU Girls’ Junior National Volleyball Championships in Orlando, Florida; the 2017 National Senior Games in Birmingham, Alabama; the 2017 Major League Dragon Boat Series held in various cities; the 2017 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon; the 2017 NCAA Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Super Bowl LI in Houston, Texas; the 2017 X Games Aspen in Aspen, Colorado; the 2016 MLB World Series in Chicago, Illinois and Cleveland, Ohio; and the 2016 USA Masters Games in Greensboro, North Carolina.

“The SportsTravel Awards celebrate excellence in sports-event management and production,” said Timothy Schneider, founder and chairman of the Sports Division of Northstar Travel Group, which publishes SportsTravel magazine and organizes the TEAMS Conference & Expo. “We are pleased to honor these outstanding sporting events, as well as the event organizers who create them and the cities that work tirelessly to host them.”

The SportsTravel Awards program bestows honors at the amateur, collegiate and professional levels in three categories each. To be eligible, events had to occur between July 1, 2016, and June 30, 2017. Criteria for nomination and voting included:

• Superior organization of and attendance at the event
• The event provided a superior experience for competitors and/or spectators
• The event’s host city or venue served to enhance the event

The 2017 SportsTravel Award winners are:

Sports Event of the Year
2017 College Football Playoff National Championship (Clemson vs. Alabama), Tampa, Florida

Best New Event
2016 USA Masters Games, Greensboro, North Carolina

Best Professional Event Series or Circuit
2016 MLB World Series, Chicago, Illinois/Cleveland, Ohio

Best Professional Multi-Sport or Multi-Discipline Event
2017 X Games Aspen, Aspen, Colorado

Best Professional Single-Sport Event
2017 Super Bowl LI, Houston, Texas

Best Collegiate Event Series or Circuit
2017 NCAA Women’s College World Series, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Best Collegiate Multi-Sport or Multi-Discipline Event
2017 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships, Eugene, Oregon

Best Collegiate Single-Sport Event
2017 College Football Playoff National Championship (Clemson vs. Alabama), Tampa, Florida

Best Amateur Event Series or Circuit
2017 Major League Dragon Boat Series, Various Cities

Best Amateur Multi-Sport or Multi-Discipline Event
2017 National Senior Games, Birmingham, Alabama

Best Amateur Single-Sport Event
2017 AAU Girls’ Junior National Volleyball Championships, Orlando, Florida

Hosted by Visit Orlando, TEAMS ’17 is being held through November 3 in Orlando.