The fledgling nonprofit Minnesota Sports and Events (MNSE) has survived the past two years with support from private donors as it hosted the 2022 Women's Final Four, bid on the 2024 U.S. Olympic swimming trials and prepped for the 2026 Special Olympics.
But MNSE leaders say it's decision time for Minnesota leaders because the nonprofit needs financial support from the state or it will be unable to attract the type of destination sporting events held here in recent years.
"Without some sort of funding mechanism, we are going to have to pick up our toys and go home," MNSE President Wendy Blackshaw said.
The organization is preparing to host the Big Ten Women's Basketball Tournament that starts March 1 while anxiously awaiting word on whether it will get the 2024 Olympic trials for USA Gymnastics. The group also hopes to bid on the 2025-26 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
If the state doesn't win those events, it would add to a string of recently failed bids that went to cities offering to help with public cash upfront.
MNSE lost its bid to host the 2024 Olympic swimming trials to Indianapolis, a city with an established sports corporation with assets of about $12 million, according to nonprofit reports.
Last fall, Minnesota was a finalist in the bidding to bring the NCAA Men's Final Four back to U.S. Bank Stadium for any of four years beginning in 2027, but it was a no-go. The winning cities were Detroit, Las Vegas, Indianapolis and Arlington, Texas — all places that can provide public cash.
"Our city has so much to offer compared to the other cities that will be hosting a men's Final Four but without public funding, we cannot compete," Blackshaw said.