The National Association of Sports Commissions (NASC) is a non-profit, 501(c)3, membership based association and the sports event industry's leading networking organization. Founded in 1992, the NASC represents nearly 500 organizations, including 350 cities across the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico.

The Sports Commission of the Year award recognizes the NASC member that has had the most outstanding impact on its local community through sporting events based on the following criteria:

• Quality of the sporting events brought to the community based on: community interest, size of event in relation to community size, and the impact the event had on the community.
• Events from which the community as a whole or significant number of area residents received benefit.
• Evidence that these activities benefited community organizations financially or otherwise.

Atlanta has been recognized at the Sports Commission of the Year three times in 2000, 2004, and 2006. The award is announced in April at the NASC annual Sports Event Symposium.