Firecracker Sports is an owner of youth baseball and softball events, putting on both tournaments and showcases. It has the additional distinction of being a vendor for equipment for players, fields and teams.
The organization produces close to 100 events per year, and prides itself on its strong connection to college coaches. SDM sat down with Mark Cooke, president and owner of Firecracker Sports, to learn more.
Sports Destination Management: Firecracker Sports has a lot of events going on. What is your biggest?
Mark Cooke: The biggest one we have is our July 4th Showcase; that just wrapped up in Providence, Rhode Island. We had 257 baseball and softball teams, making it, I believe, the second biggest tournament on the East coast.
SDM: That is big – what kind of hotel occupancy did you see?
Cooke: We had about 1,200 room nights at peak and probably 4,000 overall.
SDM: Any idea on the economic impact?
Cooke: We have not done the running tally yet because we just finished but it was $1 million right before COVID. I’d say it is over $2 million now and probably closer to $3 million. We had teams from all over, including some from Denver who stayed for seven nights. When you factor in all those people flying in, shopping here, staying in the hotels, eating at the restaurants, it’s going to be a lot higher.
SDM: How would you describe your business model?
Cooke: Our model is a little different from some of the other companies in the marketplace. We have multiple age groups coming in and competing on the same fields. We crown one champion in each age group so, throughout the whole event, there can be four championships.
SDM: What are you looking for in a destination partner?
Cooke: The number-one thing is a supportive partner. When I go to the tourism trade shows and meet with people, I can tell almost immediately whether someone is going to be there for us if we need something or if something goes wrong at the last minute. Our tourism partners are some of the best in the country and they help us put on really good events.
SDM: Your biggest tournament was in Rhode Island. Do you stay primarily on the East coast?
Cooke: We started out based in the Northeast but we have expanded quite a bit. We added a tournament in Hershey four years ago and that went well. We decided to go a little further to the south, to Virginia, and we’ve had some good events in both Williamsburg and Fairfax. In the future, we would like to move westward into states like Iowa and Ohio, and maybe south to Georgia or the Carolinas.
SDM: If someone is interested in hosting a tournament, what should they do?
Cooke: They can reach out to me at mark@firecrackersports.com.
SDM: One more question: You have showcase events and great contacts with coaches and scouts. Have any success stories?
Cooke: Yes – we are known for our success there. We have over 1,000 players who have gone on to college and I would say about 100 currently playing in the pro leagues. In fact, Jeremy Pena of the Houston Astros, who was the MVP of the World Series this past year, played in Firecracker for a number of years.
About the Author
