Why DSM USA Is the Best Market for Minor League Sports
“The Chicago Cubs win the World Series!”
When those words were belted out by Chicago Cubs radio play-by-play announcer Pat Hughes in November of 2016, many Greater Des Moines (DSM) residents felt a surge of pride. Yes, Major League Baseball’s Cubs are located in Chicago, but many in DSM feel as though the Cubs are this region’s home team. After all, a number of the Cubs players had pitched and hit right here in Downtown DSM for the Triple-A Iowa Cubs just a few seasons ago, including 2016 National League Most Valuable Player Kris Bryant.
What DSM Offers
Here in DSM, future major league athletes play on a regular basis as they work on their craft. And the fans come out to support them. That’s why DSM was named the #1 Best Minor League Sports Market by SportsBusiness Journals. It is no wonder why. DSM offers the chance to watch high-level athletes in all of the major sports and has direct connections to the Chicago Cubs, the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves through the Iowa Wolves and the NHL’s Minnesota Wild through the Iowa Wild. Motorsports fans can see the highest level of open wheel racing in the U.S. with the Verizon IndyCar Series at the Iowa Speedway in Newton as well as the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series and NASCAR Xfinity series, which feed into the highest level of stock car racing. Football fans can watch the Iowa Barnstormers Indoor Football League team. Soccer fans can watch the Des Moines Menace men’s and women’s teams of the Premier Development League and the Women’s Premier Soccer League, respectively. And hockey fans even have multiple options as the Des Moines Buccaneers of the United States Hockey League play in Urbandale.
Seasonal Sports
For fans, whether they be diehard or casual, looking to enjoy a night out at the game, there are plenty of options. Now that winter is starting, embrace it and check out an Iowa Wild or Iowa Wolves game at Wells Fargo Arena. Buzzard Billy’s and the Historic Court Avenue District just down the street offer opportunities for pregame or postgame dinner and drinks.
When spring and summer come back around, enjoy a night at the ballpark with a hot dog and Iowa-brewed craft beer at Principal Park, or beat the heat with an indoor football game with the Barnstormers at Wells Fargo Arena. Of course, a short venture out of Downtown DSM will connect you to the Menace, Buccaneers or Iowa Speedway.
Perhaps the best part is that attending games won’t break the bank. All of the teams offer affordable tickets, and even splurging on courtside or ice-level seats will cost less than an upper-deck ticket at many big-league games.
DSM’s minor league sports scene offers another option in a long line of fun things to do that make the region a best-in-class place to live and work.