About GRSA

The Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance (GRSA) is always interested in working with groups or individuals who want to bring sporting events to Greater Raleigh. If your event is in line with the GRSA's general objectives (attracting events that generate visitor spending and/or media exposure, or both), then we will be glad to take a close look at your proposal. Chances are, we will assist with your bid effort and do everything we can to help bring your event to Greater Raleigh.

First step in bringing your sporting event to Greater Raleigh

Browse through the sports facilities section of this website to see which Greater Raleigh venues might be a good fit for your event. Also take a look at our complete listing of area hotels. If you think Greater Raleigh might be a good destination for your event, contact the appropriate individual with the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance.

Want a site visit of area venues and hotels? That’s a breeze.

If you're a sports event rights-holder or planner, just let us know which facilities are of interest to you, and we'll be glad to draft a site visit itinerary tailor-made for your event. We'll take you from point to point, and introduce you to all the key people at various venues.

We can provide all sorts of other services, too. Check out our list!

Sports best suited for Greater Raleigh, in terms of venue quality and quantity

Soccer, softball, tennis, cross country, basketball, inline hockey, baseball, track & field, golf and bowling... just to name a few.

Our role in locally-organized events

If a sports tournament or special event draws the large majority of its participants and spectators from the Raleigh/Wake County area, then the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance (GRSA) will not, in all likelihood, be able to provide significant assistance. Examples of this would be a local golf championship or a softball tournament made up almost exclusively of local teams. GRSA's central mission is to attract tournaments and championships to Wake County that bring large numbers of visitors to our area, and to work with those events to help make them successful.

Our role in making events happen

The Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance's (GRSA's) primary objective is to attract sporting events to Wake County, which includes Raleigh, Cary and 10 other municipalities. Typically, we are involved in the bid process, sometimes extensively, sometimes in a support role... whatever it takes to help make the event a reality for Greater Raleigh.

For the most part, our role is that of a liaison between an event rights-holder and a local host venue or organization. We identify and pursue events that we believe would be a good fit for our area. Then we aggressively try to bring those events to Greater Raleigh. At the same time, we identify a local host venue or sports organization that (a) is available to host the event; and (b) wants to host and/or manage the event. We try to bring the two parties together in a way that will lead to a successful sporting event for everyone involved.

Once an event is booked for Greater Raleigh, we typically play a support role (to varying degrees) and often serve on local organizing committees. We focus on housing, marketing, community involvement and support, transportation, visitor information and visitors services. GRSA does not own, manage or operate sporting events. We work closely with and rely heavily on our local partners, who are experts in the "event management" business.

FAQ: “How can I get my event on your GRSA sports calendars?”

The sporting event calendars included on this website are not meant to be comprehensive listings. In fact, there are literally hundreds of area sporting events NOT included on the calendars. Event listings are determined by the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance (GRSA) and, as a general rule, are either (1) major sporting events of community-wide interest; (2) large-scale events with significant economic impact (i.e., visitor spending); or (3) events that are supported by GRSA in any number of ways.

If you feel your sporting event merits consideration for the GRSA sports calendar, send your event information (event name, dates, times, ticket prices, contact info, web address) to the GRSA with as much advance notice as possible. Please send the listing to akirk@raleighsports.org.

Greater Raleigh's primary sports media outlets for print, television and radio coverage:

Newspapers
The (Raleigh) News & Observer
919.829.4500

The (Durham) Herald-Sun
919.419.6500

Television
WRAL (NBC)
919.821.8555

WTVD (ABC)
919.683.1111

WNCN (CBS)
919.836.1717

WRAZ (FOX)
919.595.5050

WLFL (CW)
919.872.2854

Spectrum News (24-hour local news)
919.882.4000

Radio
WRALSportsFan
919.890.6299

WPTF 680 AM
919.860.9783