Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has entered into a new development partnership with Travel + Leisure Co. to build, operate and scale hotels under the Sports Illustrated Resorts brand across U.S. college towns and major urban markets, the companies announced Monday.
The partnership will allow developers and asset owners to build standalone hotels under Sports Illustrated Resorts. The brand has traditionally operated properties with a full-service hotel, vacation club and residential condominiums. Travel + Leisure Co. acquired the rights to bring Sports Illustrated Resorts to college towns across the U.S. in 2023.
The partnership marks “the next chapter” for Sports Illustrated Resorts, Travel + Leisure CEO Michael Brown said in a statement, as the brand looks to appeal to travelers who are increasingly sports-minded. Wyndham is doing the same, capitalizing on the rapidly expanding sports tourism sector as well as college-town markets, which present unique growth opportunities for hoteliers.
Ahead of the launch, executives from Wyndham and Travel + Leisure Co. shared with Hotel Dive how the partnership will spur portfolio growth for Sports Illustrated Resorts as the differentiated brand offering meets shifting demand from both hotel owners and guests.
Winning destinations
The partnership presents an opportunity for Wyndham “to create immersive, year-round destinations across college towns and major urban markets, anchored in unique experiences, distinctive programming and premier sports-centric events,” Wyndham CEO Geoff Ballotti said in a statement.
Hotels will be located in markets “where sports are part of the identity of the destination,” Geoff Richards, chief operating officer for vacation ownership at Travel + Leisure Co., told Hotel Dive.
The brand is targeting growth in three distinct areas: university towns with large athletic programs, passionate fan bases and strong alumni communities; high-density urban markets with deep sports culture, major teams and venues; and destination markets with established tourism and a strong connection to sports and active lifestyles, Richards said.
Across these markets, Wyndham will leverage its hotel relationships to help identify potential development partners and asset owners for Sports Illustrated Resorts, per the release. In addition to hotel-only developments, partners will still be able to build Sports Illustrated Resorts as larger mixed-use destinations that combine vacation ownership and residence offerings.
Hotel owners will also have the opportunity to convert existing properties under Sports Illustrated Resorts, Wyndham Chief Development Officer David Wilner told Hotel Dive. Wyndham sees opportunity across both conversions and new construction for the brand, and “that flexibility is an important part of the proposition for owners,” he said.
“Not every great hotel opportunity needs to start from the ground up,” Wilner said. “In the right market, an existing asset can be reimagined into something much more distinctive.”
The right match
The partnership combines Sports Illustrated’s “iconic name and an experience built around the passion and community of sports” with Wyndham’s global distribution, sales and marketing capabilities, loyalty reach and technology, Wilner said. Participating hotels will connect into Wyndham’s global distribution platform and direct booking channels.
The result is “a highly differentiated offering for developers looking to get into the high-yield sports tourism sector,” Ballotti said. Globally, the sports tourism market is projected to grow roughly 40% to between 2025 and 2031 to $957.91 billion, per a Research and Markets report from August.
When it comes to the evolving sports travel landscape, “fans want more than a ticket to the game. They want the whole experience, from the tailgate and the watch party to the time spent with friends and family around the event,” Richards said. “That's exactly what Sports Illustrated Resorts is designed to deliver: immersive destinations rooted in sports, culture and entertainment, where the experience extends well beyond game day.”
Competition heats up
College towns, many of which are rooted in a rich college sports culture, have become a gateway for hospitality players to tap into sports-related travel demand, experts previously shared with Hotel Dive.
Wyndham competitor Hilton has recently expanded its college-town portfolio with new Graduate Hotels locations as well as the launch of Graduate’s sister brand, Undergraduate by Hilton. Undergraduate, in particular, caters to college town visitors, which include sports fans, Hilton previously said.
Meanwhile, in August, luxury hospitality concept Alum launched to bring condo-hotels, private members’ clubs, food and beverage and game-day programming near college campuses nationwide. The brand was founded by a team of hospitality, real estate and sports industry veterans, and is backed by Baseball Hall of Famer Derek Jeter.
However, Richards said Sports Illustrated Resorts stands out among other concepts in the space because of its commitment to sports history.
“Plenty of hotels can put a sports theme on the walls,” he said. “What we have is the real thing: more than 70 years of Sports Illustrated covers, legendary athletes and moments people still talk about, including some of the greatest in college sports.”
The University of Alabama alone has been on the magazine’s cover roughly 40 times, Richards said. “In a college town, that's not decor. That's history fans grew up with, and we get to build around it.”
Since 2023, Travel + Leisure Co. has expanded Sports Illustrated Resorts to destinations including Nashville, Tennessee; Chicago; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; and Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
The Baton Rouge development near the Louisiana State University campus, announced in April, is slated to be the first under the brand to feature a hotel component, per the Monday release.
