More than a sporting event but a platform for collaboration, investment and positive social change across the region.

That is the hope of the founder of the Caribbean Corporate Games, Lisa Weston who officially launched an international multi-sport initiative Tuesday event at the Hut on Little Jumby Island.

The inaugural event, set for June 18 to 20, 2027, is hoped to draw more than 1,500 competitors from over 100 organisations across the globe.

The initiative had been more than years in the making, according to Weston, after a chance interview at World Travel Market in London last November introduced her to the concept.

“Antigua is the perfect first location for the Games given its strategic location within the region, exceptional facilities and its proven expertise in hosting large scale events,” Weston said.

Weston credited Minister of State in the Ministry of Social and Urban Transformation Kiz Johnson, Antigua and Barbuda’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Karen-Mae Hill, and businessman Devin Joseph with helping bring the concept to Antigua over the past year, alongside Minister of State in the Ministry of Tourism Michael Freeland.

Minister Freeland, who serves as the event’s Game Director described the Games as another step in the country’s sports tourism strategy.

Minister of State in the Ministry of Tourism Michael Freeland

“Every athlete, every executive, every supporter, every family member who travels here contributes directly to our tourism economy,” Minister Freeland said.

He said sports tourism events create opportunities for taxi operators, tour guides, vendors and entertainers beyond the competition itself.

Freeland linked the Games to Prime Minister Gaston Browne’s broader push to shift Antigua and Barbuda from a tourism industry to a tourism economy, noting the new Olympic-sized pool planned for the community field at Potters is expected to be completed next year.

Registration will be open to individuals and teams aged 16 and older affiliated with a business, charity or organisation, with sports confirmed so far including cricket, football, golf, pickleball, basketball, netball, table tennis, e-sports, sailing, open water swimming and running.

A portion of proceeds from the Games will go to the Bright Horizons Foundation, a charitable grant scheme supporting sport, music and education across the Caribbean, whose formal charity status remains pending.

Organisers said further launch events are planned for London in October and across the United States, United Kingdom and Caribbean in March 2027.