CHUCK STEEDMAN NAMED CHAIR OF SPORTS MARKETING ARM OF NEW CONNECTICUT CONVENTION & SPORTS BUREAU

AEG Facilities’ Chuck Steedman, Senior Vice President & General Manager of the XL Center, has been appointed to the Executive Committee of the Connecticut Convention and Sports Bureau and the Chair of the commission’s sports marketing arm, Connecticut’s first unified effort to lure major and grass roots sports events to the region.

The new bureau is a partnership between the Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) and the former Greater Hartford Convention & Visitors Bureau, which will become the statewide entity. The organization is a private, nonprofit agency and will represent a consortium of venues, restaurants, hotels and other businesses related to the convention, meetings, sports and tourism industries.

Steedman said, “The creation of this new statewide entity will help us not only stimulate economic development throughout the state of Connecticut, but will also be another resource for us when attracting world-class events to the region. This new entity will help us streamline the way we operate and will show the world that downtown Hartford and the State of Connecticut are open for business. Steedman added, “I’m thrilled to be included in this important initiative and represent not only the Hartford area, but the XL Center and AEG Facilities who have worked very successfully to bring events to the region, and I am honored to be a part of this process.”

Steedman, who has been with AEG Facilities and the XL Center since 2008, has been instrumental in landing major events for the area, including the USA Men’s Soccer vs. Czech Republic send-off match at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, CT which drew over 40,000 people, USA Gymnastics Visa Championships in 2010, and the BIG EAST Women’s Basketball Championship which is the highest-attended women’s collegiate tournament in the country.