Plan Your Sports Event

The GMVCVB partners with sports local venues, city and town officials, city and town recreation departments, hotels, restaurants, museums and attractions to ensure successful sporting event experiences. The Greater Merrimack Valley CVB will assist the sporting event rights holder with site inspections, bid proposals, transportation options, publicity, destination literature and local, volunteer ambassadors to greet your guests. Our region, and more specifically our office, has played a pivotal role in attracting sporting events to our area. We are proud to offer our assistance and services to your organization in order to make your Greater Merrimack Valley sporting event the best that it can be. The Greater Merrimack Valley CVB is pleased to provide these complimentary resources to all groups considering hosting sporting events in our region.

The Greater Merrimack Valley CVB works closely with the Massachusetts Sports Partnership (MSP) and the Massachusetts Sports Marketing Office (MSMO) to host sporting events at the state level.

Sampling of Previously Hosted Events

• A-10 Women's Basketball Championship
• American Dance Awards
• Bay State Marathon
• Big Red Northeast Wrestling Championships
• Boston Bruins Celebrity Softball Game
• Colonial Classic Synchronized Skating Competition and World Jr. Division
• Festival Regatta (MRRA)
• Firefighters Combat Challenge
• Golden Gloves Amateur Boxing Tournament
• Lowell Mill City Triathlon
• MA State Tae Kwon Do Championships
• Men's World Curling Championships
• MIAA Baseball Championships
• MIAA Basketball Section Finals
• MIAA Hockey Divisional Finals
• New England Youth Wrestling Championships
• Pop Warner Football Conference of Eastern Massachusetts Cheerleading Championships
• USFSA Eastern Synchronized Skating
• Textile River Regatta
• US Rowing Northeast District Junior Championship
• USTA Fed Cup
• World Flying Disk Championships
• World Junior Ultimate Championship
• Central Mass Youth Football and Cheer Conference Championships

A Brief Overview of Our Area

The Merrimack Valley is easily accessible and very affordable. It is located approximately 27 miles northwest of Boston with excellent highway access from Routes 3, I-93,
I-95, I-495 and direct commuter rail service from Boston. Attendees can fly into one of three airports within a 30-mile radius of Lowell: Logan International Airport, Manchester Airport or Hanscom Regional Airfield. With over 230,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, our region can comfortably accommodate groups of up to 8000. The state of the art Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell has a seating capacity of 8,000 with 30,000 square feet of exhibit space. The Lowell Memorial Auditorium has a seating capacity of 3,000 with approximately 20,000 square feet of exhibit space. Our cities and towns are also home to a variety of baseball diamonds, fields, pools and other venues perfect for smaller events. Visit our Cities and Towns pages for more information on individual town offerings.

Sampling of Key Venues

Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell
UMass Lowell Bellegarde Boathouse
UMass Lowell Campus Recreation Center
The Lowell Memorial Auditorium
Nashoba Valley Ski Area
Edward A LeLacheur Park
John J. Janas Memorial Skating Rink
Martin Alumni Athletic Complex
UMASS Lowell Cushing Field Complex
Billerica BMX Track

Helpful Links

The Massachusetts Sports & Entertainment Commission
The Lowell Spinners Baseball Team
The UMass Lowell Riverhawks

For more information or questions contact sales@merrimackvalley.org or complete the online request for proposal form by clicking on "Submit an RFP" on the left.
Download the Sports Event Planner Guide (PDF)