Pittsburgh Should Host the Volleyball World Championships, and I Know Just the Guy to Help

An open letter, dated October 2, 2025 --

Edward W. Stack, Executive Chairman
DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc.
345 Court Street
Coraopolis, PA 15108

Dear Mr. Stack,

Can I call you Ed?

Oh. Yes, Mr. Stack will be fine.

Last week, word came out that the USA and Canada will host the 2027 FIVB Women’s World Championships for volleyball. While the finals are set for Anaheim's Honda Center, where the LA28 Olympic volleyball competition will be held, two spots are open for American cities to host preliminary rounds.

It is my hope that you will push for Pittsburgh to host matches for these World Championships.

You've no doubt seen the popularity of women's volleyball skyrocket across the country – and Pittsburgh has been at the center of that growth. Pitt has rode four straight Final Fours to become Top 5 school for attendance across NCAA Volleyball. From hosting National Championships at multiple NCAA levels to welcoming top college teams for the State Farm Volleyball Showcase, Pittsburgh has multiple venues with top-flight volleyball hosting experience (plus the soon-to-come Victory Heights arena at Pitt) that could serve as a site for competition and training.

So why am I telling you all of this?

Pittsburgh can put together a competitive bid, no doubt, but you and I both know that the main avenue to make a thing happen in this country is a rich man saying "I am a rich man, and I would like this thing to happen in this country."

Beyond your billions in wealth, DICK'S Sporting Goods is the official sporting goods provider of the upcoming Olympics in Los Angeles. You can use your sway in the U.S. sporting sphere to rub some elbows, twist some arms, and do other things to people's limbs in order to secure this opportunity for the hometown of DICK'S.

(By the way, do you appreciate how I'm using the official brand style of DICK'S, all caps?)

Sure, Omaha can have some of the preliminary rounds for the volleyball-mad Nebraska population. But the other city, in a TV-friendly Eastern Time Zone hosting afternoon matches so that they're in prime time for Europe? Put it here in Pittsburgh.

You would like that for our city, wouldn't you? Heck, your company paid $1.11 million for the Paul Skenes one-of-one rookie debut patch card mostly so you could let Pittsburghers see it for themselves.

Pittsburgh is big enough to have the infrastructure and population to host World Championship matches, but not so big that the excitement would disappear into the hum of the metropolis. The people of Pittsburgh would be thrilled to welcome the world. We can be a red, white and blue crowd for Team USA while drawing on the region's legacy of immigration to support volleyball powers like defending world champions Italy, silver medalists Turkey, Poland, Serbia, Germany, China and more.

Picture it with me, if you will: the August heat is intense, so a Saturday afternoon at PPG Paints Arena to watch some world-class volleyball sounds pretty enjoyable. The U.S. team is led by Rachel Fairbanks at setter and Olivia Babcock on the right side, cheered on by Pittsburghers who got to see them grow into greatness. The atmosphere could be internationally electric.

And it's not just about securing the matches – it's about having the marketing support of DICK'S behind us to ensure that Pennsylvanians, Ohioans, West Virginians and more know that the Women's Volleyball World Championships are in Pittsburgh and they're invited to fill the arena. The greatest volleyball players on earth – fighting for a world title and for their nation's spots in the Olympic tournament. Be there! BE THERE!

We don't need to be a giant city to be a great host. The 2022 World Championships in Poland saw matches in Gdańsk, Łódź and Gliwice – all with far smaller airports by passenger counts than Pittsburgh International, freshly renovated for our visiting guests.

Mr. Stack, I've already contacted SportsPITTSBURGH to make sure they're aware of this opportunity. They assure me that they are. But bidding organizations only have so much sway. That's where you come in.

Pittsburgh won't be hosting an Olympics any time soon (as much as I may dream...). World Cup matches aren't in our future. So here is our opportunity to showcase Pittsburgh as a welcoming host for international events, boost the existing momentum around the sport of volleyball, and sure, maybe sell some shoes in the process.

Now I should really end this letter before I say something like "give a bunch of money to Pitt Volleyball's NIL." OOPS! My bad. But maybe...