Orlando power brokers are pushing hard to land the U.S. men’s national basketball team for a weeklong pre-Olympic training camp and two exhibition games at the Kia Center in downtown Orlando. Local sports leaders have pulled together an application seeking county tourist-tax support to cover the bid fee for the visit. They are targeting late June to early July 2028, lining up the camp just ahead of the Los Angeles Games, which open July 14.
According to WESH, the Greater Orlando Sports Commission will go before the Tourist Development Tax Sports Incentive Committee on March 30 and ask for $3 million in sports-incentive funds to offset a bid fee tied to the proposal. The application obtained by the station outlines a June 24–July 5, 2028 window for a weeklong camp and two exhibition games at the Kia Center, and notes that USA Basketball expects to schedule four exhibition games nationally in early July. Opponents for those exhibitions have not yet been set.
Approval path
Orange County’s public calendar shows the TDT Sports Incentive Committee is slated to meet on March 30 to review applications, including requests for tourist-tax support tied to visitor-heavy events. If the committee signs off, the request would move to the Orange County Board of County Commissioners for final review and any formal allocation of tourist-development dollars.
The pitch: attendance and impact
The application projects combined attendance of about 38,000 across the training camp and exhibition games, roughly 11,000 room nights in Orange County hotels, and an estimated $10.3 million economic impact for the region, per WESH. GO Sports pitches the bid as a tourism play, with the fee covered in part by tourist-tax incentive funds in hopes of filling hotel rooms, boosting restaurant tabs, and driving downtown foot traffic during what is typically a softer summer stretch. The bid materials also note that the four planned exhibition dates would be split among at least two host cities, a move aimed at spreading the visitor draw.
Venue and hosting track record
The Kia Center, home of the Orlando Magic and located at 400 W. Church St., is listed in the bid documents as the preferred site for both the camp and the exhibitions. The Greater Orlando Sports Commission has been leaning on Orlando’s history of hosting NCAA regionals and national championships as part of its pitch, and both the commission’s materials and the Kia Center’s site highlight the city’s experience with marquee basketball events and its ability to accommodate incoming fans and teams.
Context and precedent
USA Basketball has already brought high-level games to Central Florida in recent years. The national program faced Cuba at Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee in February 2024. According to USA Basketball, that roster featured many G League players, a reminder that pre-Olympic schedules and lineups can shift as the national program finalizes personnel and opponents.
From here, the process is largely procedural. The sports committee's vote on March 30 will determine whether the request advances to the full county commission, and any final deal would depend on both county approval and USA Basketball’s ultimate scheduling decisions. If everything falls into place, the camp would bring national-team players, staff, and traveling fans into downtown Orlando at a time when the city is actively chasing big-ticket sporting events for the 2020s.
