Orange County and Orlando Sports
During the past three decades, Orange County has grown from a quiet, little-known rural area to a thriving, world-renowned metropolis with more than 900,000 residents. The county offers not only a refined downtown area, but also beautiful parks and recreational areas for outdoor sports enjoyment.
Orange County offers the sports visitor the perfect setting for any competition. Including a world-class arena for competitors, coaches, and spectators with wonderful training and practice venues; over 58,000 hotel rooms that fit the budget of all spectators, families, and competitors; attractions and theme parks that are the envy of the world.
International, national, and regional events, including U.S. Junior Olympic Taekwondo Championships, U.S. Volleyball Junior Olympics, World Cup and Olympic Soccer, World Aerobic Championships, U.S. Bobsled Push Trials, Festival of Speed and our own unique Celebrity Mascot Games, have found a perfect home in Orange County.
Orange County Mayor Richard Crotty and City of Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer have embarked on a historic journey to punctuate Central Florida’s status as a world-class community by leading the charge to build new state-of-the-art performing arts and sports and entertainment events centers, and renovate the Citrus Bowl Stadium. You can learn more about these three exciting community projects at Project Hometown.
Orange County Sports Facilities
Amway Arena - Orlando
The Amway Arena plays host to United States Figure Skating and USA Gymnastic events, and is considered one of the nation's premier multi-purpose sports facilities with seating for up to 17,000. Located in downtown Orlando just minutes from famous Church Street, the Amway Arena is home to the NBA's Orlando Magic, Arena League Orlando Predators, and the WHA2 Orlando Seals
Orange County Convention Center - Orlando
This venue has been utilized by numerous sports' national governing bodies and is one of the largest meeting/competition facilities in the country, boasting over 2.2 million square feet of meeting space. The Orange County Convention Center recently served as the host site for the 1996,1998 and 2003 U.S. Junior Olympic Taekwondo Championships, each boasting approximately 5,000 athletes and 10,000 spectators.
Florida Citrus Bowl - Orlando
Located on Orlando's famous Church Street, The Citrus Bowl comfortably seats 70,000 spectators. This site is home to the college football postseason Mazda Tangerine Bowl and Capital One Bowl, and served as a host site for the 1994 World Cup and Olympic Soccer competitions.
University of Central Florida Arena - Orlando
The UCF Arena is an 87,000 square foot multipurpose facility. This site, with seating for 5,300 and two levels of competition area, can host sporting events from basketball, to gymnastics, to volleyball and taekwondo, just to name a few. Adjacent to the UCF Arena is a world-class track and field facility, which served as a 1994 World Cup Soccer Training site.
