MHSAA championships boosting Hattiesburg economy

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By Charles Herrington
Published: Dec. 2, 2022 at 8:28 PM CST

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (WDAM) - The champions on the gridiron in Hattiesburg this weekend aren’t the only winners.

VisitHattiesburg says the entire city of Hattiesburg is a winner, too.

That organization says this weekend’s state high school football championship games are bringing in an estimated 40,000 fans, who will have an estimated $4.5 million impact on the Hub City economy.

Add that to the spring baseball tournaments at the University of Southern Mississippi, the Hattiesburg Half-Marathon and other athletic events this year, and VisitHattiesburg says 2022 has been a banner year for sports tourism in Hattiesburg.

“We’ve really tried to find ways to have a really good sales strategy, to look for opportunities like this, to bring people here,” VisitHattiesburg Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer Marlo Dorsey said. “So, we believe we will be able to have more than $50 million in total economic impact from this year alone in 2022, for the Hub City and sports tourism and next year is looking great, too.”

This is the third time in four years that Hattiesburg to host the state football championships.

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