Take a look at some of the news coverage of the big Charlotte MLS announcement on Tuesday, December 18.
MLS launches new sports era in Charlotte as city, Tepper land soccer expansion team
Charlotte Observer
Hannah Smoot, Alison Kuznitz, Alaina Getzenberg, Scott Fowler
MLS is ushering in a new sports era for Charlotte.
It awarded the 30th Major League Soccer team to the city and Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper on Tuesday, as MLS Commissioner Don Garber joined Tepper and Mayor Vi Lyles at Mint Museum Uptown for the announcement.
The event capped months of frenzied speculation and competition as other cities vied for the expansion bid. [READ MORE]
Big wallet, big personality: David Tepper adds an MLS team – and imitates Elvis
Charlotte Observer
Scott Fowler
We all know that David Tepper — who now owns two of Charlotte’s three major-league sports franchises — has a very big wallet.
What we are finding out more and more is that Tepper also has a very big personality. [READ MORE]
Charlotte gets MLS’ 30th franchise for record $325 million
ESPN
David Newton
Major League Soccer on Tuesday made it official that Charlotte will be the home of the league’s 30th and likely last franchise.
Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper purchased the franchise for an MLS-record $325 million, sources told ESPN.
“This is the right time for our league,” MLS commissioner Don Garber said in an interview with ESPN. “It’s the right time for the sport of soccer in America and it really is the right time for the ownership group. This is likely the last expansion team in Major League Soccer. [READ MORE]
MLS has officially come to Charlotte: Between David Tepper, his staff and the city, do you know what comes next?
The Athletic
Jourdan Rodrigue
The Major League Soccer era began in Charlotte on Tuesday morning, not with a bang, but with a baritone.
Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper, who was awarded MLS’s 30th expansion team in just his second year of NFL ownership, burst into song at the lectern during the ceremony at the Mint Muesum in Uptown Charlotte.
His song — an adaptation of “Heartbreak Hotel” — was a love song for Charlotte, the city in which Tepper has made a home, begun to overhaul the NFL franchise for which he paid a record $2.25 billion cash and hopes to reshape into a “destination sports city” in the years to come. [READ MORE]
Charlotte Lands Major League Soccer Expansion Team
Associated Press
Steve Reed
David Tepper’s vision of bringing a Major League Soccer team to Charlotte has been realized.
Charlotte was awarded an MLS expansion team on Tuesday by MLS commissioner Don Garber at a news conference in downtown Charlotte. The team will begin play in 2021 and can sign players immediately.
Tepper owns the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, and the team will play its games at Bank of America Stadium, where the Panthers play.
The city also has the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets, but doesn’t have an NHL or MLB team. Tepper hopes that Major League Soccer will fill that void in the summer for sports fans in Charlotte. [READ MORE]
Charlotte lands MLS expansion team as Panthers’ Tepper pays record entry fee
Sports Illustrated
Avi Creditor
MLS’s 30-team picture is now complete.
Charlotte was awarded the league’s latest expansion team on Tuesday and will join the league in 2021, a year before St. Louis and Sacramento round out the current, extended growth period.
Inter Miami and Nashville SC will join the league for the 2020 season, giving MLS 26 teams for its landmark 25th campaign. Charlotte’s to-be-named franchise will accompany Austin FC into the league in 2021, ensuring that the league retains an equal number of franchises during each year of growth. [READ MORE]
Party’s over? MLS expansion reaches its climax as Charlotte solidifies final spot
Sporting News
Ryan Tolmich
For years, the question was how many. As Major League Soccer continued to evolve and energize, the debate centered around when enough would be enough. Over the past decade and a half, the league has enjoyed an unprecedented period of expansion that, just a few years prior, looked almost impossible.
That expansion brought more eyeballs as fans began to identify with their local clubs. That expansion brought international relevance as the league continued to take strides towards competing with its peers. And, perhaps most importantly, that expansion brought money. Lots of it.
On Tuesday, that expansion period concluded, for a while at least. The league’s 30th team will settle in Charlotte, becoming the 20th club since 2005 to join MLS and the 14th new team to join the league since 2010. Two of those teams, Inter Miami and Nashville, will begin play in 2020. Charlotte will then join Austin in 2021 before St. Louis and Sacramento will kickstart in 2022. And then, MLS commissioner Don Garber says, that will be it. [READ MORE]
You ready to party? Charlotte wins MLS expansion team
Charlotte Business Journal
Erik Spanberg
Santa brought Charlotte a Major League Soccer expansion team on Tuesday, but it all started with a show of strong corporate support over the summer.
Just before he announced Charlotte had been awarded an expansion club — in front of an audience of local political and business leaders and soccer supporters at the Mint Museum uptown — MLS Commissioner Don Garber told CBJ that the turning point occurred in August.
It was then that Garber came to town to meet with Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper and Mayor Vi Lyles, among other leaders. [READ MORE]
With MLS to Charlotte now a done deal, here’s what comes next
Charlotte Business Journal
Erik Spanberg
You may have heard something about Major League Soccer coming to Charlotte. On Tuesday at the Mint Museum uptown, the league’s commissioner, Don Garber, joined David Tepper and Mayor Vi Lyles to make official what became a poorly kept secret weeks ago.
Tepper bought the NFL Carolina Panthers in 2018 for $2.275 billion and has devoted much of this year to adding a soccer team. Now he’s got one — and they’ll be taking the field in 2021 at a renovated Bank of America Stadium. [READ MORE]
“It’s a historic day for the Queen City:” Charlotte lands MLS franchise
WSOC-TV
Joe Bruno, Allison Latos, Gina Esposito, Matt Harris
It’s official — Charlotte is getting a Major League Soccer team.
David Tepper’s vision of bringing an MLS team to Charlotte has been realized and a new kind of professional football will play inside Bank of America Stadium starting in 2021.
One of the biggest announcements in the history of Charlotte was made Tuesday morning, as MLS officially named the Queen City the home of the league’s 30th club.
The signs were up and the fans were out in uptown, welcoming MLS to Charlotte. At 10 a.m., city leaders, Tepper and MLS executives gathered at the Mint Museum to make the announcement. [READ MORE]
MLS Charlotte expansion ‘a historic day for the Queen City’
Pro Soccer USA
Mitchell Northam
It was a gloomy Tuesday morning in Charlotte as rain came down on the Queen City, but nothing put a damper on the party held at the Mint Museum.
After a year of rumors, reports and scuttlebutt, it is now official. Major League Soccer is coming to Charlotte and the team will begin play about 14 months from now for the 2021 season.
MLS commissioner Don Garber joined Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles and the owner of the expansion team, David Tepper, to announce Charlotte as the 30th MLS team.
“Today is a historic day for the Queen City,” Garber said. “It is my pleasure to welcome Charlotte to the MLS.” [READ MORE]
