MARCH 21, 2022 — HOUSTON — FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo welcomed back more than 2.4 million guests for its 90th anniversary in 2022, with action-packed RODEOHOUSTON® competitions, more than 34,000 livestock and horse show entries, a historic $1 million steer auction purchase, a diverse lineup of star entertainers, and family-friendly experiences for everyone.
“Opening our gates and welcoming fans back in 2022 to celebrate our 90th anniversary has truly been an amazing feeling. With a concert lineup spanning musical genres, agricultural and educational exhibits, record-setting junior auctions and fun for the whole family throughout the Rodeo grounds, guests from Houston and beyond came out to celebrate this milestone year,” said Chris Boleman, Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo president and CEO. “Thank you to our 35,000 volunteers, donors, sponsors, community partners and guests who support our charitable mission of supporting Texas youth and education.”
The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo entertained guests for 24 days, Feb. 24 – 26, and Feb. 28 – March 20, 2022.
2022 RODEO HIGHLIGHTS ATTENDANCE Total attendance for all activities on the grounds, Feb. 24 – 26 (World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest, presented by Cotton Holdings) and Feb. 28 – March 20, 2022 (Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo) reached 2,417,248.In three days, the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest entertained 158,215 guests.
Showtime highest daily total attendance from 2022:
first: Saturday, March 19, 2022 – 174,735
second: Wednesday, March 16, 2022 – 159,931
third: Friday, March 18, 2022 – 159,656
fourth: Saturday, March 12, 2022 – 138,338
fifth: Saturday, March 5, 2022 – 136,600
Paid rodeo/concert attendance reached 1,301,529.
Highest paid rodeo/concert performances from 2022: first: Friday, March 18, 2022 – Marshmello – 73,866 second: Thursday, March 17, 2022 – Chris Stapleton – 73,757 third: Friday, March 11, 2022 – Black Heritage Day, presented by Kroger – Bun B’s H-Town Takeover – 73,259 fourth: Friday, March 12, 2022 – Parker McCollum – 73,243 fifth: Saturday, March 5, 2022 – Jon Pardi – 72,857
The Sunday, March 20, concert-only performance with George Strait, and special guest Ashley McBryde, had a paid concert attendance of 79,456.
RODEOHOUSTON®
RODEOHOUSTON committed $2.14 million to its contestants in 2022.
The 2022 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series invited the world’s top rodeo athletes to compete in eight traditional rodeo events.
RODEOHOUSTON introduced its second women’s only event to the competition, Breakaway Roping.
RODEOHOUSTON Super Series athletes competed for a share of $1,881,500 in prize money. Each event champion rode out of NRG Stadium with $50,000, plus winnings from the preliminary rounds.
The 2022 RODEOHOUSTON Super Series Champions, with total money earned, are:
EVENT
ATHLETE
HOMETOWN
AMOUNT EARNED
BAREBACK RIDING
JESSE POPE
GARNETT, KANSAS
$56,250
BARREL RACING
JORDON BRIGGS
TOLAR, TEXAS
$60,000
BREAKAWAY ROPING
ERIN JOHNSON
FOWLER, COLORADO
$53,750
BULL RIDING
STETSON WRIGHT
BEAVER, UTAH
$57,000
SADDLE BRONC RIDING
SAGE NEWMAN
MELSTONE, MONTANA
$57,500
STEER WRESTLING
HUNTER CURE
HOLLIDAY, TEXAS
$57,000
TEAM ROPING HEADER
CLAY TRYAN
LIPAN, TEXAS
$54,500
TEAM ROPING HEALER
JAKE LONG
MORGAN MILL, TEXAS
$54,500
TIE DOWN ROPING
JOHN DOUCH
HUNTSVILLE, TEXAS
$57,250
Tryan is a two-time RODEOHOUSTON Champion (2016)
The RODEOHOUSTON Super Shootout®, presented by Crown Royal, is a one-day invitation-only event that featured champion athletes from eight of the best rodeos in the U.S. and Canada.
Contestants competed as individuals, and as a team consisting of event champions from each of the eight rodeos:
Calgary Stampede
Days of 47 Cowboy Games & Rodeo
Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo
National Western Stock Show and Rodeo
Rodeo Austin
RODEOHOUSTON
San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo
San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo
The Super Shootout featured five fan-favorite events:
Bareback Riding
Barrel Racing
Bull Riding
Saddle Bronc Riding
Steer Wrestling
With a total purse of $262,500, the Super Shootout is among the richest one-day rodeo events in the world.
Each event champion earned $25,000, and team members earned an additional $2,500 each for their share of $12,500 for the winning team.
2022 champions, with the rodeos they represented, are:
Bareback Riding: Cole Reiner, Team RODEOHOUSTON
Barrel Racing: Sherry Cervi, Team Salt Lake Days of 47
Bull Riding: Josh Frost, Team Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo
Saddle Bronc Riding: Rusty Wright, Team San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo
Steer Wrestling: Ty Erickson, Team National Western Stock Show
Super Shootout Team Award: Team San Angelo Stock Show & Rodeo
LIVESTOCK AND HORSE SHOW
Livestock and horse show competitions drew 34,310 entries.
Junior Commercial Steer: $1,075,636 (live auction of choice steers)
Lamb and Goat: $3,209,725
Poultry: $2,799,143
School Art: $2,317,237
Steer: $7,878,482
Eleven auction Grand Champion and Reserve Grand Champion lots set Rodeo records.
Junior Market Barrow
Grand Champion: $250,000 (Rodeo record)
Reserve Grand Champion: $200,000 (Rodeo record)
Junior Market Pen of Broilers
Grand Champion: $200,000
Reserve Grand Champion: $145,000
Junior Market Goat
Grand Champion: $210,000 (Rodeo record)
Reserve Grand Champion: $190,000 (Rodeo record)
Junior Market Lamb
Grand Champion: $300,000
Reserve Grand Champion: $185,000 (Rodeo record)
Junior Market Steer
Grand Champion: $1,000,000 (Rodeo record)
Reserve Grand Champion: $675,000 (Rodeo record)
Past Rodeo president and chairman of the board and current Executive Committee member Don D. Jordan and family make historic $1 million purchase, commemorating 90 years of Rodeo and Jordan’s upcoming 90th birthday.
Calf Scramble and Judging Contest Winners received 374 certificates, each worth $2,250 to apply toward the purchase of a registered beef heifer or steer to exhibit at the 2023 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Certificate Premiums totaled $841,500
Calf scramble exhibitors from 2021 who returned with their heifer or steer projects to compete at the 2022 Houston Livestock Show received more than $100,000 total in premiums and awards.
The Super Scramble competition was added in 2022, where the 19 “First Catch” scramblers from each of the previous 19 Calf Scramble performances were invited to participate in the event Saturday, March 19, 2022. The 19 scramblers had an extra chance to catch one of the nine calves during the event, and each participant was awarded a cash prize based on their performance. The event awarded an additional $42,000 in cash prizes for Texas youth.
SCHOLARSHIPS AND EDUCATION
Calf scramble exhibitors from 2021 who returned with their heifer or steer projects to compete at the
2022 Houston Livestock Show received more than $100,000 total in premiums and awards.
The Super Scramble competition was added in 2022, where the 19 “First Catch” scramblers from each of the previous 19 Calf Scramble performances were invited to participate in the event Saturday, March 19, 2022. The 19 scramblers had an extra chance to catch one of the nine calves during the event, and each participant was awarded a cash prize based on their performance. The event awarded an additional $42,000 in cash prizes for Texas youth.
OFFICIAL RODEO MERCHANDISE
More than 200,000 individual items of Rodeo and entertainer merchandise went home with fans including:
130,000 caps and T-shirts, 10,000 mugs and tumblers, and 12,000 lapel pins.
CARNIVAL AND FOOD
RCS, the carnival provider, drove nearly 435,000 miles to deliver the carnival to Houston, which is the distance to the Moon and back.
Approximately 2.9 million rides were taken at the carnival. The most popular rides were La Grande XL, Sky Ride and the Titan.
One hundred trailers full of carnival prizes were brought to the 2022 Rodeo.
Approximately 675,000 prizes were won at the games. The most popular prizes were Squishmallows, basketballs and teddy bears.
The most popular food items were turkey legs, corn dogs, fried Oreos and funnel cakes.
The Cookie Stand baked more than a quarter million cookies.
The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo promotes agriculture by hosting an annual, family-friendly experience that educates and entertains the public, supports Texas youth, showcases Western heritage and provides year-round educational support within the community. Since its beginning in 1932, the Rodeo has committed more than $550 million to the youth of Texas and education. For more information, visit rodeohouston.com and connect with #RODEOHOUSTON online via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for all the latest news.
