What Atlanta should do after being named the No. 1 sports business city

Atlanta is awash in world-class sporting events, gleaming and profitable sports palaces and — except for when a section of I-285 shuts down for the weekend — a solid infrastructure.

Since the start of 2025 alone, it has hosted the College Football Playoff championship game, the MLB All-Star Game and the FIFA Club World Cup, along with the opening of the U.S. Soccer training center in Fayette County and, in a month, the World Cup.

Atlanta will become the second U.S. city (after Los Angeles) to host an Olympics and World Cup matches.

A number of teams in Atlanta, the Braves in particular, are on the rise.

The flurry of successes has surfaced from an ecosystem in which the business of sports has thrived. It was recognized Monday, as Atlanta was named the No. 1 sports business city in the U.S. by Sports Business Journal.

As Atlanta Sports Council president Dan Corso said in a statement, it’s the result of collaboration from leaders across the city’s sports, business, civic and hospitality communities who are committed to bringing world-class events to the city.

“Atlanta has built a strong reputation as a premier destination for major sporting events, and we’re excited about the momentum and opportunities still ahead,” Corso’s statement read.

Down the road, the Super Bowl will come to Atlanta in 2028, followed by the NCAA men’s basketball Final Four in 2031. Pending FIFA awarding the 2031 Women’s World Cup to the U.S., Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica — the four-nation plan is the only bid for that year’s tournament — games would likely be held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

There’s just a lot happening in Atlanta and a lot of people deserve credit, from Corso’s sports council to Falcons and Atlanta United owner Arthur Blank to corporate sponsors such as Chick-fil-A and Coca-Cola to ushers, hot dog vendors and hotel front-desk clerks.

It is a high point in a continuum that began with the arrival of the Braves and the expansion Falcons in 1966 to play in the then-new Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. The Olympics took place here 30 years later, catalyzed by Billy Payne and Andrew Young.

The next three decades have brought Super Bowls, Final Fours, All-Star games of all stripes, SEC football title games and CFP championship games, not to mention countless thrilling moments courtesy of Atlanta’s own teams. The World Cup will be a fitting 60-year milestone.

“We had a strategy to make Atlanta the sports capital of the world and make Atlanta the capital of college football,” retiring Peach Bowl CEO and president Gary Stokan, formerly the Atlanta Sports Council president, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday with typical fervor. “I think now we can say we’ve done both of those things.”

The recognition acknowledges what we experience here every day, that there is so much happening in the sports landscape.

But here’s the thing that’s always a pebble in my shoe when hearing about millions of dollars in economic impact, marquee events and sold-out arenas.

What about everyday Atlantans who can’t afford to get inside the fancy stadiums and arenas that they involuntarily helped fund with their taxes?

There are benefits, particularly for those whose work depends on people spending disposable income on tickets and meals and hotel stays near stadiums.

If you are a sports fan, there is an added quality of life. And teams and events make charitable contributions back to the community.

But, for instance, if you’re a soccer diehard but can’t afford tickets to the World Cup — on Monday, the least expensive get-in price on Ticketmaster for any of the eight games was $230.86 — then they might as well take place in another city.

You can buy Braves tickets for less than $20, but a hot dog and a soft drink will cost about the same, and don’t forget parking. That might not break the bank for you, but it would for a lot of people who love the Braves.

So, what if all the civic-minded partners aligned with the Atlanta Sports Council committed to setting aside just a small portion of tickets to every sporting event that takes place in metro Atlanta and gave them away for nothing or next to it?

Maybe place them in a lottery that only residents of the metropolitan area could apply to. Or they could be distributed through public-school systems or Boys & Girls Clubs. Or teams and stadiums could figure out their own methods for ensuring tickets end up in the hands of those who otherwise can’t attend.

The odds of winning tickets wouldn’t be great. But it could still reward thousands of people every year. That’s something, right?