By the Numbers: The AAU Junior National Volleyball Championships

When news broke that AAU’s Junior National Volleyball Championships, held in Orlando over nearly two full weeks, were not just back but bigger and better than ever before (nearly 40,000 athletes were present, for example), it was cause for celebration in sports tourism – even among those who had not played a part in it.

But how big, exactly, were the numbers it pulled down? Time to find out with facts and figures courtesy of AAU.

First, a little information about the teams themselves:

3,309: Number of girls’ teams

39,708: The total number of female players (averaging 12 players per team)

136: Total number of boys’ teams

1,632: Total number of boys who played

640: How many more teams played in 2021 (3,445) as opposed to 2019 (2,805) – and it goes without saying it’s bigger than 2020

23: Percentage of growth over 2019

In how many divisions?

40: Total divisions (Players were divided not only by age but by skill level, leading to…)

35: Girls’ divisions

5: Boys’ divisions

What about the championships that were awarded?

40: The number of teams awarded the titles of National Champion.

469: The total number of awards given to teams

Wow. What did Orlando get out of it?

$173.2 million: Total economic impact

$3,931: How much was raised for breast cancer research

117,000: Room nights used in 2019 (2021 figures not available yet but sure to be higher, given the increase in registration)

In the Orange County Convention Center:

171: The number of courts set up

13: The total number of days the tournament was held

135,000: The number of spectators

478,700: Total number of views on the live stream, BallerTV

2001: The first year first used the Orange County Convention Center as an off-site location from ESPN Wide World of Sports.

Second: This year marks the second year that the AAU Junior National Volleyball Championships have been held solely at the OCCC.

Three: The number of concourses the OCCC employed to host that many teams this year – North, South and West, becoming the largest sporting event the OCCC has ever held.

Potential for Higher Education:

800: College coaches attended