Although the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets are commonly thought of as the only “major league” sports team in Oklahoma, Tulsa and Oklahoma City prove that the terms “minor league” and “professional” belong together. They also demonstrate that if a planner wants a big venue with a crowd-pleasing athletic event, there’s no need to look further than these two cities.
Many minor-league sports venues have been built as a result of cities’ efforts to revive their downtowns. This is a clear win for planners, since many of the newest sports facilities are located in the heart of a city’s action, maximizing convenience and minimizing transportation problems.
Particularly in cities that lack “major” franchises (teams from the NFL, MLB, etc.), minor-league sports teams have devoted followings of fans who enjoy being close to the action—and the players—in a way that major-league stadiums and arenas don’t allow. It can be a great experience for groups, says Suzann Stewart, senior vice president at the Tulsa CVB.
“They’re all wonderful teams. They can do things for groups like discounted tickets, special seating and special themed nights for conventions, and we have had groups do that,” Stewart says.
First up: the Tulsa 66ers, who won two NBA Development League championships in their previous home in Asheville, N.C. The 66ers have been holding their own in their new digs at Tulsa’s 6,311-seat Expo Square Pavilion, which offers VIP rooms and 22 private skyboxes during games and is also available in its entirety to groups.
When the Arena Football League moved its season to late winter in 2000 to accommodate the football-hungry NBC network, it spun off the af2 minor league to take over the summer. Since then, the Tulsa Talons won the af2’s ArenaCup championship in 2003, playing fast-paced AFL football at the Tulsa Convention Center and winning about three times as often as they lose.
The Tulsa Convention Center is so flexible that it also hosts the Central Hockey League’s (CHL) Tulsa Oilers, who sometimes play cross-state rivals the Oklahoma City Blazers, beating them in 1993 for the CHL championship. Groups looking to see teamwork and perseverance need look no further than CHL hockey, which has been on the ice since 1928.
Over in Oklahoma City, the af2’s Yard Dawgz have only played at the Ford Center since 2004, but they were third in af2 attendance by 2006, again demonstrating OKC’s hunger for pro sports.
The Ford Center has 19,675 seats, is an architecturally elegant little sister of Detroit’s Ford Field, and is versatile enough to go from arena football to hosting Eric Clapton this March. It offers private suites, catering and restaurants for groups.
In the city’s vibrant Bricktown district, groups can watch the AAA-affiliate Oklahoma RedHawks play baseball at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark, which opened in 1998 and was designed to resemble a stadium of yesteryear.
