Fort Wayne's rise as a sports tournament destination has seen increasing momentum over the past 10 years, and this weekend proves the benefits of fostering that growth.
Coming off of the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Quarterfinal and Semifinal Rounds last week hosted at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, Visit Fort Wayne is excited to welcome the following sports groups to our city this weekend for more basketball as well as gymnastics events.
78th Annual Lutheran Basketball Association of America’s National Tournament
For the fifth year in a row, Visit Fort Wayne is honored to welcome back the 78th Annual Lutheran Basketball Association of America National Tournament.
Visit Fort Wayne's group sales team helped propose local venues and won the business for 2022 and the tournament has returned annually and will likely continue to host in Fort Wayne through at least 2030. The economic impact this event has brought to our community from the first event in 2022 to this year's event in 2026 is estimated at $5.9 million.
Teams will arrive in Fort Wayne on Thursday, March 26th, and the tournament will take place through Sunday, March 29th. Twenty-one Fort Wayne hotels are being utilized for housing teams and fans, expecting an attendance of 3,000 visitors from all over the nation including 32 boys teams and 29 girls teams from schools as far as California, Iowa, Florida, Texas, Kansas, Missouri, and all over the Midwest.
The local teams participating this year are the Concordia Cubs girls team and the Emmanuel St. Michael Eagles, both boys and girls teams.
The tournament will be held at the Plassman Athletic Center at Turnstone, taking advantage of the convenience of 4 courts under one roof, with opening ceremonies taking place at the Concordia Theological Seminary on Thursday, March 26th at 5:00 PM.
Rob Gasser, President of LBAA says, "The 78th Annual Lutheran Basketball of America's National Tournament is back in Fort Wayne for its 5th time after four very successful years. We're excited to have Fort Wayne local and recent Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame inductee, Dave Miller, as the keynote speaker for the Opening Ceremonies. Additionally, we are thankful for the great support from the Fort Wayne community that has graciously volunteered their time. Details can be found at www.lbaa.org."
Much appreciation goes to the Fort Wayne Lutheran Community for assisting in the planning of the event and for working with local schools on securing volunteers for the event. Those interested in volunteering can find more information at www.lbaa.org.
2026 USA Gymnastics Men's Region 5 Championships
USA Gymnastics is no stranger to Fort Wayne having hosted 8 events in our city over the past 5 years. Now, March 26 - 29, the Grand Wayne Convention Center will welcome back 800 athletes, 150 coaches, and 500+ spectators from around the Great Lakes Region for the USA Gymnastics Men's Region 5 Championships. Athletes between the ages of 18-40 will compete as a qualifying tournament for the USA Gymnastics Nationals.
The USA Gymnastics Men's Region 5 Championships was previously hosted in 2019 at the Grand Wayne Convention Center and has been chosen again as the Indiana host as part of a 3-year rotation with Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, and Kentucky.
Looking ahead to April, USA Gymnastics will also bring the 2026 Women's Region 5 Level 6-8 Championships to Fort Wayne expecting 1,300+ athletes and 3,000+ spectators traveling from Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana.
As part of Visit Fort Wayne's 10-Year Tourism Master Plan, sports tourism is a pillar in Allen County's economic success bringing outside spending into our community to support our local businesses, venues, hotels, and restaurants and offsetting resident taxes.
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