World Games organizers set to finish paying off vendors

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - Almost a full year later, World Games leaders will soon be able to say they are debt free. Legislators are giving the games $5 million to help organizers finish paying all of their vendors.

World Games leaders say the pandemic, record inflation, and low ticket sales all led to the $16 million deficit; which means many of the vendors who helped make the event possible went unpaid.

“We had hundreds of vendors to help us execute and deliver these games. Now we are down to just over a dozen vendors that are still owed,” said The World Games 2022 CEO Nick Sellers.

Organizers have spent the last 11 months working to pay off each and every one of them.

Several stepped up to the plate to reduce the debt. This includes the city who contributed five million, and the county who added another four.

Now, the state is set to provide the last $5 million as a portion of their new budget.

“For me, driving away from Montgomery that day when I knew we were going to get the funding it was like, the clouds had lifted. I could see some blue sky again.”

Failing to secure state aid could have resulted in bankruptcy.

“If we didn’t receive this funding, the options would have been very limited for us to close it successfully. It would have been such a challenge in terms of the image and reputation of the region to be able to recruit the next big event. So this is a big deal.”

The final payments will go out between now and October.

“I would deem the world games 2022 a big success for the region. I think the further away we get from it, the more we will appreciate how it elevated our community and what it may mean in terms of recruiting future events.”

Sellars also believes that now the city and region will be more prepared for the next big event.

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