DES MOINES, Iowa -- A month's worth of high school championship spots tournaments mean big money for the city of Des Moines...
"The state tournaments alone, and this includes wrestling, girls and boys basketball, that's estimated to have a $3.5 million economic impact," says Catch Des Moines CEO Greg Edwards.
And when you add in the NCAA men's basketball tournament first and second rounds being played at Wells Fargo Arena later this month...
"Last time they were here, our economic impact calculator showed an over $7 million dollar impact to the economy," Edwards says.
Des Moines also hosted the NCAA men's tournament in 2016 and 2019.
He says Catch Des Moines plays a big role in the tournament while it's in town
"We'll make sure they've (the teams) arrived at the airport safely, and get to their hotels. We'll gather a fan base at those hotels when they arrive. We provide signage throughout the metro area, primarily downtown. We'll have volunteers on the streets to help out-of-town guests know where they're going," Edwards says.
This year's games NCAA men's basketball tournament first and second round games at Wells Fargo Arena will be played March 16th and the 18th.
Edwards says If you don't already have a ticket, you might be out of luck.
"All tickets, right now, are all sold. The eight schools that qualify to play in Des Moines are allocated a certain amount of tickets. If those tickets don't get sold at the schools, then those will go back for general sale," he says.
Edwards says Drake University is the official host school for the tournament's run in Des Moines, which precludes the Bulldogs from playing games in town should they be among the 68 teams announced on Selection Sunday--March 12th.