This event will give Brownsville the opportunity to showcase our hospitality, great food and great local attractions, with a diverse group of athletes and families from all across our great state of Texas.
Thousands of amateur athletes, friends and family will descend on Brownsville in late July for the Texas Amateur Athletic Federation’s Summer Games of Texas, scheduled for July 27 to 30.
It’ll happen again in 2024, since cities that TAAF selects to host the games — sort of an Olympics for amateur athletes — get to host them for two years consecutively. TAAF, the city of Brownsville and the city’s Parks and Recreation Department announced the upcoming games at a Thursday press conference, during which City Manager Helen Ramirez described the games as a “highly anticipated sporting event for the city.”
“We are honored to host the competition, the participants and their families here in Brownsville,” she said. “This event will give Brownsville the opportunity to showcase our hospitality, great food and great local attractions, with a diverse group of athletes and families from all across our great state of Texas.”
Nonprofit TAAF was founded in Georgetown in 1925 to promote, organize and conduct amateur athletics competition. The first Games of Texas took place in San Antonio in 1986.
Brownsville was chosen by TAAF’s board in 2018 to host the 2022-2023 games, beating out Bryan-College Station and El Paso in the final round of voting, though the pandemic pushed everything back a year. The city says it prevailed “because of its commitment … to promoting amateur athletics, including the promotion of parks, recreation and leisure services to the communities it serves.”
McAllen hosted the games in 2016-2017, attracting 7,621 athletes the first year and 8,100 the next. Brownsville officials expect the games to draw more than 24,000 athletes and associated visitors over the two years. A dozen competitions will be held at sites across the city, including Brownsville Independent School District venues.
Although the competition schedule is subject to change depending on participation, currently slated for this summer are youth basketball, soccer and softball; adult flag football, pickleball and track & field; and youth and adult boxing, disc golf, golf, skateboarding, swimming and tennis.
Winners will go on to compete against athletes from other states.
“The great thing about the Games of Texas competitions is that it gives athletes the opportunity to feature their talents and abilities,” TAAF Executive Director Mark Lord said. “You never know when one of these athletes will show up in an Olympics competition — competing on the global stage. It can happen.”
The city of Brownsville is looking for volunteers from schools, higher education institutions, businesses and civic organizations to help make sure the games run smoothly this July. For more information about volunteering contact Parks and Recreation at (956) 243-7970 or (956) 551-2770.
For more information, visit www.gamesoftexas.com.
