The University of Central Florida asked Orange County on Thursday for up to $119 million in tourist development tax funding to overhaul three athletics facilities, laying out its case before the county's tourism-tax task force in Orlando. The pitch covers broadcast infrastructure, a soccer-and-track complex and softball complex seating, but the task force took no action on the request after hearing it.
UCF's presentation, detailed by WESH Orlando, broke the request into three pieces: $51.1 million for broadcast infrastructure upgrades, $43.6 million to expand capacity for championship-level soccer and track events, and $24.3 million to improve and expand seating at the softball complex. UCF Athletic Director Terry Mohajir told the task force that broadcast capabilities are paramount when hosting events, according to the outlet's report. UCF President Alexander Cartwright said the broadcast investment would increase the university's national visibility and improve the fan experience.
Why UCF Says It Needs the Upgrades
UCF currently cannot broadcast all of its games and relies on broadcast trucks brought in from out of town, the station's report notes. The upgrades are meant to attract more televised games and national sporting events, and Cartwright said UCF needs broadcast capability sufficient to host a football playoff game.
The $43.6 million line item covers a separate track and field complex as well as a soccer-specific stadium. On the softball side, the request follows head coach Cindy Ball-Malone's 2025 Athletes Unlimited Pro Softball championship win, which supporters argue strengthens UCF's case to host national tournaments, according to On3. UCF softball currently plays in a 2006 facility outside the main athletics village, and Cartwright said the improvements would position the program to host more national events if opportunities arise, adding that the three projects together could give people more reasons to visit, stay and return to Orlando.
A Second Ask Following the Roth Tower Grant
This isn't the university's first turn at the county's bed-tax well. UCF received $90 million in tourist development tax funding in October 2023 for the Roth Tower expansion at the Acrisure Bounce House stadium, a four-level project that broke ground in December 2024 and is on schedule and on budget to open for the 2026 football season, according to FOX 35 Orlando.
The new request comes less than three years after that grant and follows UCF's move into the Big 12 Conference on July 1, 2023, when it became the youngest institution in a Power Four league, according to the university's own account of the transition on its Pegasus site. That move has driven Mohajir's
