#18 Philadelphia
▶ RÉSUMÉ: 2017 NFL Draft; 2018 PGA Tour BMW Championship; 2019 NHL Stadium Series; 2019 SheBelieves Cup; 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers; 2023 NCAA Divisions I, II and III Men’s Lacrosse Championships and Divisions I, II and III Women’s Rowing Championships; 2023
NWSL Draft; 2023 and 2024 U.S. Junior Open Squash Championships; 2023 United Soccer Coaches Convention; 2023 Wharton Sports Business Summit; and 2024 U.S. High School Squash Championships.
▶ RECENT WINS: WrestleMania 40 in April; 2025 NCAA Division I Wrestling
Championships; 2026 PGA Championship; 2026 Major League Baseball All-Star Game and Draft; 2026 NCAA Men’s Division I Men’s Basketball first and second rounds; 2026 and 2030 United Soccer Coaches Convention; and 2026 FIFA World Cup (six matches).
▶ FINDING A NICHE: The Arlen
Specter US Squash Center opened in the summer of 2021 in the historic Pennsylvania State Armory Building on Drexel University’s campus. Its 20 competition courts make it the sport’s largest facility in the country. It houses the US Squash national headquarters and serves as a training center for Team USA athletes preparing for the sport’s Olympic debut in 2028.
▶ FORWARD PROGRESS: The Xfinity Live entertainment venue, which sits near Wells Fargo Center, Citizens Bank Park and Live Casino Hotel Philadelphia, is undergoing $12 million in updates expected to be completed by the time Lincoln Financial Field hosts the 2026 FIFA World Cup. A 206-room Holiday Inn opened in September within walking distance of the site.
▶ STAY AND PLAY: Sports fan or not, a run up the 72 “Rocky” steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art is a must-do. Or head to Chick-A-Boom, where its best-known investor, Randy Moss, might be cooking up chicken and waffles.
▶ RÉSUMÉ: Annual events include NASCAR’s Bank of America Roval 400 and Coca-Cola 600 (both since 1960); Duke’s Mayo Bowl (2002); PGA Tour Wells Fargo Championship (2003); ACC football championship game (since 2010, except 2016, extended through 2030); Jumpman Invitational presented by Novant Health college basketball tournament (2022); and Ally Tipoff women’s college basketball tournament (2023). Other recent events: PGA Tour’s 2017 PGA Championship and 2022 Presidents Cup; 2019 NBA All-Star Game; 2022 and 2023 Big South Conference Men’s & Women’s Basketball Championships; 2023 IFAF Americas Continental Flag Football Championship; 2024 U.S. National Taekwondo Olympic Team Trials; and 2024 USA Fencing Junior Olympic Championships and Parafencing Championships.
▶ RECENT WINS: 2024 BodyArmor State Games of North Carolina; 2024 Copa América; this month’s NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball first and second rounds; 2025 Division II Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships and Men’s and Women’s Soccer Championships; and ACC basketball tournaments (men’s in 2025, 2026 and 2028; women’s in 2027), baseball championship (2024, 2026,and 2028), and men’s and women’s lacrosse (2024-28).
The Charlotte Convention Center’s $127 million expansion that finished in 2021 included the addition of a pedestrian bridge to the adjacent Westin Hotel and light rail station, as well as 50,000 square feet of meeting and pre-function space, making it easier to host events like the recent taekwondo and fencing championships.
▶ FORWARD PROGRESS: The 208-room Moxy adjacent to the Spectrum Center and 181-room upscale Element are under construction downtown, giving the center city an inventory of more than 7,000 rooms. Charlotte Douglas International Airport, annually one of the world’s busiest airports, is scheduled to finish an extensive, $4 billion multiphase expansion by the end of 2025.
▶ STAY AND PLAY: The NASCAR Hall of Fame is just blocks from Bank of America Stadium, Spectrum Center and the Class AAA Charlotte Knights’ Truist Field. The nearby 1,300-acre U.S. National Whitewater Center was built as an Olympic team training site with rapids up to Class IV and is open to the public.