Onondaga Nation land near Syracuse will play host to a major international lacrosse tournament in 2015.
The Iroquois Nationals, the national lacrosse team for all six Iroquois nations, will host the event, the Federation of International Lacrosse World Indoor Lacrosse Championship. The event is held every four years and brings together national-level teams.
The Tsha’Hon’nonyen’dakhwa’ Onondaga Nation Arena will host the tournament from Sept. 18 to Sept. 23. The event will then move to the First Niagara Center in Buffalo from Sept. 25 to Sept. 26.
The games at the Onondaga arena will mark the first time the tournament has been played on indigenous lands, according to the Syracuse Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The visitors bureau estimates the six-day portion of the event at the Onondaga Nation will generate $4 million for the local economy. The event will attract about 15,000 fans and 300 athletes from more than 10 countries including Australia, Czech Republic, England, Ireland, Slovakia, Israel, Thailand, the United States, and Turkey, according to a news release.
Fans and athletes will probably stay in or near Syracuse, SCVB Communications Coordinator Danica Kaltaler says.
Tickets are not on sale yet, but general admission seats will cost about $25, says Neal Powless, assistant director of the native student program at Syracuse University. For more information go to http://wilc2015.com/tickets/.
Contact Imbert at news@cnybj.com