ESPN Wide World of Sports is to receive a huge update at Walt Disney World to make way for a new state of the art cheerleading and dance team competition (286,000 square-foot) venue.
Disney is partnering with Varsity Spirit to create what is to be the first venue in the world that is designed from the ground up to be used for cheerleading and dance team competitions.
The new space will be able to used for up to four competition areas and will also have additional areas that are being created for warm up and practice. Judges and officials will also be receiving their own area in this new expansion.
This expansion comes as no real surprise to me, cheerleading competitions are huge at Walt Disney World as it, attracting thousands to the resort every year. I have been there when The Dance Worlds competition has been on and there are lots of squads practicing all over the place, including several which I spotted practicing in their resort car park, hopefully this new space will give squads a chance to practice in the right kind of facility as much as they like.
Both the 2016 Dance and Cheerleading Worlds are taking place at Walt Disney World again this year and with Disney committing to such a big project it seems this will be the case for many years into the future.
ESPN Wide World of Sports Expansion Details
The new expansion will be able to seat over 8,000 guests and when not running competitions will also have the ability to host six regulation basketball courts, six regulation volleyball courts or options to hold concerts.
Disney are adding concessions throughout the building with an additional entrance to the complex and box office to go along with it.
Construction is underway now and is expected to be complete by the middle of 2017.
Ryan has been attending theme parks since as long as he can remember and his first proper memory comes from when he was just three years old sitting in Main Street USA drinking a Nesquik milkshake from a carton while the piano was being played outside Casey’s Corner.
