ASAE Annual Meeting

Choose Chicago and the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA) have announced that the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) has chosen Chicago as the host city for their 2028 ASAE Annual Meeting & Exposition. ASAE is the premier global, professional organization for association executives with more than 52,000 individual members and more than 1,800 organizational members. Often dubbed the “Super Bowl of meetings”, the ASAE Annual Meeting, which will take place at McCormick Place in 2028, is the largest annual educational and networking conference for the association profession in the world.

“With thousands of decision-makers from some of the biggest associations in the world descending on Chicago, this will be an opportunity to not only deliver direct economic impact to our city but influence future decisions and lead to even more meetings and events choosing Chicago,” said Rich Gamble, Interim President and CEO of Choose Chicago in a media announcement.

The average immediate economic impact of the ASAE Annual Meeting & Exposition is between $15-18 million over four days. The prospective downstream economic impact makes hosting the ASAE Annual Meeting unique in the meetings industry. Annual Meeting host cities can reliably expect 20 percent of ASAE decision-makers in attendance to book future business in the host city within 5 years.

In a press release announcing Chicago as the host city along with all host cities through 2034, ASAE President and CEO Michelle Mason, FASAE, CAE, said, “We are excited to partner with these cities to deliver exceptional experiences for ASAE attendees and showcase each city’s unique brand of hospitality. The ASAE Annual Meeting serves as a cornerstone for the association community to connect, share insights and shape the future of the profession. Our Annual Meeting host cities are critical partners to our success.”

According to ASAE, in choosing host cities, they took into consideration the convention center facilities, hotel packages, and venue options for evening events. Other site selection factors include the geographic location; the commitment of the host city to deliver new experiences for ASAE attendees; and the support of local city officials and hospitality industry leaders, as well as the city’s relationship with ASAE.

On deck before 2028, ASAE host cities are: Los Angeles (2025); Indianapolis (2026) and Charlotte, NC (2027).