Portland Is a Playground for Sports Events
A gateway for outdoor recreation, Portland is also a destination for successful sports events.
Portland is a sports city.
We’ve got the NBA Portland Trail Blazers and the to-be-named 2026 WNBA expansion team, whose roaring fans will fill the Moda Center. We’ve got the MLS Portland Timbers and the NWSL Portland Thorns, whose raucous supporters chant and sing at Providence Park. Hockey fans take over Veterans Memorial Coliseum to see the Portland Winterhawks, while baseball devotees cheer the West Coast League’s Portland Pickles and Minor League Baseball’s Hillsboro Hops.
Credit: Ashley Anderson
A Sports Hub with a Bright Future
Even when we’re at work, we’re still focused on sports. Sportswear giants Nike, adidas, Columbia Sportswear, Under Armour and Keen are among the area’s largest employers. Swiss performance running shoe company, On, has had an office in Portland since 2013, and Hoka is about to open up shop here, too.
Long known as a gateway for outdoor recreation, Portland has become a destination for sports events, from golf to women’s soccer (the Portland Thorns have won numerous championships). Recent events in Portland include the US Women’s Senior Open, the National Veterans Wheelchair Games, the USA Fencing North American Cup and the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament.
Portland will host the NCAA men’s basketball first and second rounds in 2026. In 2028, the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament’s Sweet 16 and Elite 8 will return to the Rose City, followed by the NCAA Women’s Final Four in 2030.
The success of sports events in Portland is orchestrated by a dedicated group: Cathy Kretz and Jamie McCool of Travel Portland along with Matt Reed, Jenn Dooher and the team at Sport Oregon. Together, their expertise encompasses everything from local and national sports scenes to Portland event spaces.
The venues that we have are pretty spectacular.
Matt Reed, COO of Sport Oregon
Two Arenas, One Rose Quarter
Portland’s Moda Center recently finished major renovations — and to uphold its reputation as a top-tier arena, it has more scheduled. And thanks to two nearby venues, Veterans Memorial Coliseum and the Oregon Convention Center, you can have three venues to host your event, all within a half-mile radius.
“That’s such a unique thing, to have those two buildings right next to each other,” Reed says. “And both are near the Oregon Convention Center, which is unbeatable for its size and how it’s operated.”
A Sports City, Connected by Light Rail
Cathy Kretz, National Account Director for Travel Portland, agrees. “We have that trifecta of the Memorial Coliseum, the Moda Center and the Oregon Convention Center,” says Kretz. “The hotel package surrounding these venues can accommodate up to 1,300, and the hotel footprint expands seamlessly downtown for larger groups. The MAX light rail connects them all.”
In addition to linking venues and hotel rooms, the MAX runs to Providence Park, one of the country’s premier soccer stadiums. “Not many cities can match our combination of neighboring venues and easy transit,” says Kretz.
With sports tourism growing, Portland’s hotel owners are excited to work with event organizers to welcome athletes, teams, families and fans. “We’ve really seen that appetite grow,” says Jamie McCool, National Account Manager at Travel Portland. “Hotel partners are eager to earn that business.”
At the Forefront of Women’s Sports
Another place sports fans feel right at home: The Sports Bra, the nation’s first sports bar 100 percent dedicated to women’s sports. While national interest in women’s sports is skyrocketing, Portland has always been ahead of the curve in appreciating and celebrating the magic of women’s sports.
Credit: Amy Lam
“I have three girls,” says McCool. “So for me, the excitement around women’s sports is personal and really energizing on multiple levels. You can’t be what you can’t see, and in Portland, we’re showing girls that they can be anything.”
That ethos has defined Portland for decades — since 2004, the Rose City Rollers, Portland’s roller derby league, has delighted locals and visitors alike. In 2024, Portland hosted the Women’s Flat Track Roller Derby Championships.
Endless Adventure Nearby
Meanwhile, all athletes — and those who simply appreciate an active lifestyle — can find something to enjoy near Portland. East of the city, skiers and snowboarders dot the slopes of Mount Hood, and kiteboarders carve their way through the Columbia River Gorge. Just an hour or two west of downtown, surfers catch waves on the Pacific Coast. And right in the middle of Portland, rowing clubs slice their way through the Willamette River.
“There’s so much to do, so close outside of town,” says Reed. “If you travel to six different places in Oregon, it’s like traveling to six different countries. You go to the coast, you go to Mount Hood, you go to Hood River, then you’re down in wine country — it feels like, ‘Where the heck am I? This is amazing!’”
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