Soccer tournament brings money, traffic

The annual Creek Classic is hosting more than 300 youth teams.

The 24th annual Creek Classic soccer tournament kicks off this weekend and will bring millions of dollars to the area along with some traffic issues.

The games will be played this Saturday and Sunday. The tournament includes boys and girls teams ranging in age from 8 to 17 years old.

“We’ll have 318 teams this year,” said John Ankeney, Beavercreek Soccer Association executive director and tournament director. “We have divided them up so they will be evenly matched.”

The games will be held at Hobson Freedom Park and Ankeney Soccer Complex. The facilities are roughly six miles from each other with U.S. 35 running between them. This is where traffic back ups could develop.

“Flow is the most difficult part,” Ankeney said. “Deputies help with directing traffic during the tournament.”

Jim Martin, who lives near both tournament locations said it makes it difficult for him to turn from his street.

“Anytime we have a sporting event nearby it can take five minutes for us to get a break so we can turn.”

Even though the tournament may cause headaches for the weekend. It has a major economic impact on the area. It brings in more than $3 million each year.

Ankeney Soccer Complex will be the primary location for the games. It has more than 100 acres of land and has up to 50 fields including full-size and small-size fields.

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