Tickets refunded for international basketball tournament

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - A weeklong basketball tournament that was slated to start Monday is now canceled.

In April, the city and World Vision Sports & Entertainment officials held a news conference to announce the new international basketball event series.

Kansas City’s Municipal Auditorium was set to host four international men’s and women’s basketball events – one each month – from June to September.

World Vision Sports & Entertainment, the organizer, revealed its plans to hold similar events in Kansas City every year through 2027.

Instead, this morning, tickets were being refunded.

The city released a statement after reports surfaced that at least one team traveled thousands of miles only to find out the tournament was nixed.

“The City’s facilities at Municipal Arena are in working order,” said press secretary Sherae Honeycutt. “There were contractual obligations which were not met prior to the scheduled event. The City looks forward to working with World Vision in the future if contractual obligations can be met.”

KCTV5 reached out to World Vision Sports & Entertainment. A representative said, “For all questions in regard to our June 2023 event at this time, please our attorney, Colin Stoner.”

Stoner did not immediately respond to our requests for comment.

Municipal Arena officials said there is currently no plan in place to reschedule the tournament.

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