In the mid-1970s, Indianapolis city leaders chose to use sports as an economic and community development tool and backed the construction of sports facilities and marketing strategies to attract top sporting events.

This effort has paid off handsomely. The publicity surrounding major athletic events results in national and international name recognition for Indianapolis. The events provide opportunities to showcase the city – not only as a sports center, but also as a tourist destination, a business center and a good place to live, work and invest.

In 1979, Indiana Sports Corporation (ISC) was formed. A not-for-profit, privately funded organization, ISC was one of the first of its kind to target amateur sports as a growth industry. It attracts national and international sporting events to the city and state, represents Indianapolis in the international sports marketplace and coordinates events. To date, Indianapolis has hosted more than 400 national and international sporting events, attracted numerous sports organizations and built or renovated an estimated $400 million worth of facilities. From 1977 through 2007, the direct economic impact of amateur sports in Indianapolis was estimated to be in excess of $3 billion.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) – the most well-known amateur athletic association in the country – moved its headquarters to Indianapolis in 1999. Adjacent to the headquarters is the NCAA Hall of Champions museum that opened in 2000. According to an economic impact study released in October 2003, the NCAA generates more than $63 million annually for Indianapolis and Indiana.

Indianapolis, the Indiana Sports Corporation and the NCAA also have an agreement that will make the city home to the Men’s and Women’s Division I Final Four, men’s and women’s basketball regionals and the NCAA’s Annual Convention on an annual, rotating basis beginning in 2011 and continuing through 2039. Indianapolis also will serve as a backup contingency for future Final Fours should the previously designated city be unable to host.

• Black Coaches Association
• National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
• National Federation of State High School Associations
• USA Gymnastics
• USA Track & Field
• U.S. Diving
• U.S. Synchronized Swimming

• American College of Sports Medicine
• Central Indiana Tennis Association
• Coca-Cola Circle City Classic
• Great Lakes Valley Conference
• Indiana High School Athletic Association
• Indiana Horse Council
• Indiana Golf Association
• Indiana PGA
• Indiana Sports Corporation
• Indiana Swimming Inc.
• Indiana University Sports Medicine Drug Identification Lab
• Indiana Youth Soccer Association
• International Institute of Sport, Science and Medicine
• Horizon League
• National Association of Governors’ Councils on Physical Fitness & Sports
• National Institute for Fitness & Sport
• National Youth Sports Corporation

The exceptional success Indianapolis has enjoyed in hosting major events is due in part to its world-class facilities.

The $183 million Conseco Fieldhouse opened in 1999 and stands as a monument to Indiana’s rich basketball tradition. This state-of-the-art facility combines the nostalgic feelings of the past with the benefits of the future. The Fieldhouse is home to the NBA’s Indiana Pacers and the WNBA’s Indiana Fever, as well as being a venue for hockey, soccer, concerts and other events. The Fieldhouse has approximately 18,500 seats, including 69 suites and 2,500 club seats. The Ultimate Sports Road Trip ranked Conseco Fieldhouse as “the finest of them all in the four major sports” in 2006.

Designed by renowned architect and Hoosier native Pete Dye, Crooked Stick has been home to some of golf’s biggest events, including the 1991 PGA Championship, 1993 U.S. Women’s Open, 2005 Solheim Cup and U.S. Women’s Amateur Tournament in 2007. Crooked Stick will host the U.S. Men’s Senior Open in 2009 and become part of the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Championship Series when it hosts the BMW (formerly Western Open) Championships in September 2012.

Eagle Creek is one of the country’s largest municipally owned parks. It encompasses more than 1,300 acres of water and 3,900 acres of land. Its regatta course is one of only two in the U.S. sanctioned for international competition by the International Federation of Rowing Associations and has been the site of past U.S. Rowing National Championships. In 1994, the course hosted the World Rowing Championships, the first time the event was held in the United States. The Park also features an archery range designed according to world-class specifications and two competition fields. Eagle Creek also has a 36-hole golf complex that has been rated one of the top 50 public courses in the country by Golf Digest.

When it opened in 1928 on the Butler University campus, Hinkle Fieldhouse was the largest basketball arena in the United States and remained so for 20 years. Now, it is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The 10,800-seat Fieldhouse is the home court for Butler University’s basketball teams. It was also the site of the first U.S.S.R.-U.S. National Team basketball game and volleyball events for the Pan Am Games. Scenes from the blockbuster movie “Hoosiers” were filmed in the Fieldhouse.

Built in 1939, the first home of the Indiana Pacers has a permanent seating capacity of 7,659 and is used for concerts, ice skating, rodeos, trade shows and sporting events. It is home to the Indiana Ice, members of the United States Hockey League.

The stadium features a nine-lane, 400-meter rubber track that is considered one of the world’s fastest. Resurfaced with a new track in 1997, the stadium contains 12,100 permanent spectator seats and is adjacent to several athletic fields for softball, soccer and volleyball. The USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships were held at the track in 1997, 2006 and 2007.

This facility boasts a swimming pool with adjustable lengths and an 18-foot-deep diving pool featuring five platforms and three springboards. Speed is built into the pool; it is exactly the right depth to reduce reverberation from the bottom. Events held here include U.S. Olympic swimming, diving and synchronized swimming trials and NCAA Championships.

Part of Pan American Plaza, the center features two indoor skating rinks. The Olympic Rink, one of the few 100-by-200‑foot Olympic-size rinks in the United States, is used for ice sport training, classes and public skating. The American Rink is an 85-by-200-foot rink that seats 1,000 spectators. The Research Center houses the Human Performance Lab, where skaters’ strengths and weaknesses are tested in regard to their physical conditioning.

Built in 1909, the Speedway is home to the Indy Racing League’s Indianapolis 500, as well as the NASCAR Sprint Cup Allstate 400 at the Brickyard. The Indianapolis 500 and Allstate 400 at the Brickyard represent the two largest single-day sporting events in the world. The track is the center of activity in May for the Indianapolis 500 and is used for high-speed tire testing almost year round. In 1994, the Speedway hosted its first Allstate 400 at the Brickyard NASCAR race. The 160-lap race was the first major racing event other than the Indy 500 to be held at the Speedway since 1911. In September 2008, motorcycle racing returned to the IMS for the first time in nearly a century with the Red Bull Indianapolis GP for MotoGP, the world’s premier motorcycle road racing series. The inaugural Red Bull Indianapolis GP race took place on the new 16-turn, 2.601-mile (4.186 km) motorcycle road course at the Speedway. The IMS grounds, officially sponsored by Bombardier, also include a golf course and museum.

The Indianapolis Tennis Center features an 8,000-seat stadium court, a 2,000-seat grandstand court, six indoor courts, 14 outdoor hard courts and four outdoor clay courts. The Tennis Center is the permanent site of the Indianapolis Tennis Championships, an event of the U.S. Open series that has attracted top players such as Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Roddick, James Blake and Robbie Ginepri.

The headquarters is responsible for chartering and serving all 1,000 leagues for the 13 Midwest states that comprise the central region of Little League Baseball. The facility hosts annual summer camps for approximately 800 players and year-round leadership training for members. The comp lex includes five playing fields, a dormitory, swimming pool and tennis and basketball courts.

The new, state-of-the-art, 63,000-seat stadium is the permanent home of the Indianapolis Colts, as well as a venue for future NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Final Fours. Lucas Oil Stadium will also play host to the 2012 Super Bowl.

The Velodrome accommodates up to 5,000 spectators around its 333.3 meter track. With maximum banking of 28 degrees, the track allows for top speeds from cyclists. The Velodrome has hosted several national events, including the Grand Prix of Cycling and the EDS Senior Track Cycling Championships. Sanctioned by the National Bicycle League (NBL), the BMX Track is used for bicycle motorcross racing. In 1996, the Velodrome and BMX track were privatized and now are operated by the Indiana Bicycle Coalition, a non-profit bicycling advocacy group.

NIFS is a state-of-the-art fitness and research center dedicated to health and physical fitness research, education and training. Open to athletes, as well as the public, the institute’s fitness center offers complete fitness appraisals and has a 200-meter indoor track, regulation-size basketb all floor, rubberized workout floor, weight training and cardiovascular exercise equipment and fitness classes.

Built in 1961, this 300-acre facility includes a 2½-mile road course, a .686-mile banked oval track and a 4,400-foot drag strip. O’Reilly Raceway Park is home to the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals, the richest drag racing event in the world. Other major events include the NASCAR Nationwide Serie s, Craftsman Truck Series and the ASA ACDelco Series.

This $18 million open-air, grass stadium is the home of the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians baseball team. The 13,500-seat stadium features 29 luxury suites and a grass picnic area with open lawn seating for an additional 2,000 fans.

Built for the Pan American Games, this facility includes a competition field with 4,500 permanent spectator seats and a practice field that seats 2,000.

Sep 12-14, Red Bull Indianapolis GP, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Oct 4, 25^thAnnual Coca-Cola Circle City Classic, Lucas Oil Stadium

2009

March 5-8, NCAA Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament, Conseco Fieldhouse

March 12-15, NCAA Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament, Conseco Fieldhouse

March 27-29, NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Midwest Regional, Lucas Oil Stadium

May 31, Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

July 26, Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

July 30-Aug. 2, USGA Men’s Senior Open Golf Championship, Crooked Stick Golf Club

2010

March 4-7, NCAA Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament, Conseco Fieldhouse

March 11-14, NCAA Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament, Conseco Fieldhouse

April 3 & 5, NCAA Division I Men’s Final Four, Lucas Oil Stadium

May 30, Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

July 25, Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

2011

March 3-6, NCAA Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament, Conseco Fieldhouse

March 10-13, NCAA Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament, Conseco Fieldhouse

April 3 & 5, NCAA Division I Women’s Final Four, Lucas Oil Stadium

May 29, Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

July 24, Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

2012

March, NCAA Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament, Conseco Fieldhouse (exact dates TBD)

March, NCAA Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament, Conseco Fieldhouse (exact dates TBD)

May 28, Indianapolis 500, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

July 31, Allstate 400 at the Brickyard, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Sept., BMW Championships, Crooked Stick Golf Club (exact dates TBD)