Visit Sarasota, the county’s tourism agency, is changing how it determines the economic impact of sports events. The reason for the change is international sporting events that weren’t on the radar until the last couple of years. One motivator was local businesses saying the county’s numbers were, according to the Herald-Tribune, “too conservative.” The new system will include data from Florida Sports Foundation and Visit Florida, the state’s tourism agency, and includes adults and young people, whether they are here for the event or live in the area, and how much Southwest Florida residents spend at such events.
