It is absolutely no secret that Naples and the Paradise Coast attract visitors from far and wide because of our stunning white-sand beaches, sumptuous resorts and world-class culinary treats.

But there is another factor that has guests of all ages flocking to our fair region: sports.

That’s right, sports. Amateur sports, to be precise. Athletes and families by the thousands seeking out Collier County as a destination where hopes and dreams can continue to flourish on fields that are literally right under your nose.

We speak of Paradise Coast Sports Complex, the 180-acre facility built by Collier County in the City Gate development just north of the intersection of Interstate 75 and Collier Boulevard (951 to us locals). The complex, funded entirely by the county’s Tourist Development Tax, is a glittering jewel that few of those locals seem to know about.

This isn’t a knock on anything or anyone, of course. It takes time for any new business to drum up acknowledgement from its neighbors. But Paradise Coast Sports Complex exists as much for everyone outside Collier County’s geographic bounds as it does for residents.

The former, by the way, is going like gangbusters. After a less-than-auspicious infancy in 2020 that coincided with the COVID-19 epidemic and a change in management companies, PCSC is rocking almost every weekend with big-time regional and national events. In December alone, four new fields (making nine in all) opened with two national-level youth football events and a national- level soccer showcase.

The football events are especially notable in that they are practically the Coke and Pepsi of their genre, and both now call PCSC home. Football University’s annual National Championship series—which includes a Freshman All-American game—completed its fourth year at PCSC just before Christmas. Just a week prior, American Youth Football’s national championships debuted at PCSC after a multi-year run in Kissimmee. Both events drew similar numbers of out-of-town residents (think thousands), played a similar number of games (more than 200 each) and pumped millions into the economy during what is traditionally a slow period right before the new year.

PCSC is also set to welcome the third iteration of the Southwest Florida Shootout lacrosse event— pitting Division-I teams against each other—as well as the third season of the FHSAA state boys and girls lacrosse championships in the spring. Spring is also dotted with lacrosse spring break events, and soccer tournaments abound almost year-round.

Those are just the highlights of the events that attract athletes and families from out of town. Paradise Coast Sports Complex was also envisioned as a place for all county residents to enjoy, and PCSC aims to hit that mark with both athletics and cultural events.

On the sports side, a multitude of semi-pro soccer teams play home games at PCSC. The complex hosts several youth soccer and youth football programs weekly, and the Collier County Public School’s middle school soccer teams play their games there every spring.

On the cultural side, PCSC hosts three major yearly events: FallFest (for kids of all ages right around Halloween), SnowFest (two years running after the event outgrew the Golden Gate Community Center) and an annual Eggstravaganza that draws thousands on the Easter weekend every year. PCSC packed its 3,500-seat stadium with the Ben Allen Band and Fourth of July fireworks in 2021, rocked the night away with Air Supply in 2022 and hosted a Fourth of July fireworks show on almost no notice in 2023 as the area was still recovering from Hurricane Ian.

PCSC also draws crowds every weekend to The Cove Beer & Wine Bar with live music, and fitness fanatics are finding The Factory outdoor workout facility a great option to get their pump on. A nearly mile-long lake trail is great for biking, rollerblading or running. New beach volleyball courts are the best in Southwest Florida, and local distance running groups have already discovered the complex is a hidden jewel at which to run 5Ks.

The complex is poised to be so much more, too, should the county come through with promised funding to complete PCSC’s footprint with six baseball and five softball diamonds— which would allow Collier County to break into that market, as well as attract even bigger soccer events (as soccer can be played on PCSC’s artificial turf baseball outfields).

It took remarkable foresight to turn what was native scrubland into Paradise Coast Sports Complex, especially when the land could have instead been used to build a spring training facility for the Atlanta Braves. But when it comes to intelligent use, do we really need a onemonth influx of visitors in March, or are we better served with a 12-month flow of visitors in the form of amateur athletics? County commissioners are also poised to approve a deal between PCSC and FC Naples, an ownership group that is set to deliver a United Soccer League expansion team to Collier County just in time for the 2026 World Cup, potentially shining an even brighter spotlight on both the facility and our fair home.

Local detractors are out there, of course, wondering why tax dollars— even though they actually aren’t their tax dollars, but are those of visitors—were invested in Paradise Coast Sports Complex. They muse about pumping more money into PCSC being a folly, without grasping that investing in something that already makes money—which the complex did for the first time in fiscal year 2022—can actually make more money.

As a good friend of mine used to say, that’s just dummy thinking. Collier County got into the amateur athletics business at the literal ground floor, and it is already starting to pay off—both in actual dollars and in goodwill within the community.

Put simply, Paradise Coast Sports Complex is a great thing for Collier County. You should check it out.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The author works part-time for Sports Facilities Companies, which manages Paradise Coast Sports Complex on behalf of Collier County.