AUBURN — Not familiar with roller hockey? You have a full year to bone up on the concept.

The logo for the 2024 National Collegiate Roller Hockey Championships was designed by Liz Allen, Auburn’s Director of Communications. City of Auburn

The city announced this week that they’ve secured a deal to host next year’s National Collegiate Roller Hockey championships, a move that could bring in millions of dollars. 

The tournament will be held in April 2024 at Auburn’s Norway Savings Bank Arena, which is able to accommodate both ice and roller hockey — it’s the only dual ice sheet arena in the state of Maine.

Mayor Jason Levesque estimates the city could rake in roughly $2.4 million as 3,000 athletes and their families descend on Auburn for the championship. 

“This is a huge opportunity for Auburn to host and showcase our city to thousands of athletes and spectators from across the U.S.,” Levesque said Thursday. “This will be the first of many national and regional sporting events to land in Auburn.” 

“The state of Maine, the city of Auburn and the Norway Savings Bank Arena is an ideal location for this event” says Marc Gosselin, Executive Director of Community Partnerships & Sports Tourism. “Maine has strong hockey roots and our city is a thriving sport and recreation community. We have the only modern dual ice rink facility in the state, and we are perfectly situated in central Maine. Our team is extremely grateful and appreciative of the partnership we have built with the NCRHA and couldn’t be more excited to welcome athletes, coaches, staff, and fans to Auburn for a memorable championship experience.”

Roller hockey is exactly what it sounds like: it’s just like ice hockey but on wheels instead of skates. And the sport, played in nearly 60 countries worldwide, has become increasingly popular in the U.S. over recent years. 

With over 175 teams and 2,000 players nationwide, the National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association is the governing body of collegiate roller hockey in the U.S. The NCRHC will bring 50 to 60 teams across four divisions together to compete for the championship.

Levesque hopes that with the roller hockey tournament being played in Auburn, other college sports events will start looking to the city as a possible host for their events. That’s been the plan for years. 

In 2019, the city restructured staff in order to expand its recreation and sports tourism efforts — although the mayor finds that term too limiting. 

“It’s really sports, and arts and entertainment,” he said. “Sports tourism is a term that gets thrown around a lot, but it’s really business based around a culture of sport within our city,” he said in 2020. “People coming to Auburn for either day trips or a weekend because of sports is growing.”