2,000 volunteers needed for Final Four in Atlanta
The NCAA and the local host committee are seeking 2,000 volunteers to assist with activities surrounding college basketball’s Final Four in Atlanta next year.
An online application process for volunteers will officially launch at noon Monday at NCAA.com/FinalFour, Atlanta Basketball Host Committee executive director Carl Adkins said.
The volunteers will serve in a variety of roles, including assisting visitors at the airport and hotels and working at ancillary events in Centennial Olympic Park and the Georgia World Congress Center.
No volunteer roles will be available inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium, site of the Final Four semifinals April 4 and championship game April 6, or State Farm Arena, site of the NCAA Divisions II and III championship games April 5.
Most of the volunteers will be needed April 3-7, but some as early as April 1. Training will be held in March.
Applicants must be at least 18 years old, must pass a background check and must commit to working at least three four-hour shifts.
Adkins said the hospitality provided by volunteers is a key ingredient in Atlanta's hosting of major sports events, such as Super Bowl LIII earlier this year.
“The positive feedback that we received from every possible constituent group at the Super Bowl raved about the volunteers,” Adkins said. “Volunteers are critical to the success of these events, because that’s what (visitors) will remember when they leave. Sure, they will remember if it was an exciting game or a buzzer-beater, but they’ll really remember the way they were made to feel.”
The men’s Final Four has been played in Atlanta four times previously (1977, 2002, 2007 and 2013).
About the Author
Tim Tucker, a long-time AJC sports reporter, often writes about the business side of the games. He also had stints as the AJC's Braves beat writer, UGA beat writer, sports notes columnist and executive sports editor. He was deputy managing editor of America's first all-sports newspaper, The National Sports Daily.
