Charlotte FC is a planned Major League Soccer expansion franchise that is expected to begin play in 2022. The team will play at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. The team is owned by David Tepper, who was awarded the expansion franchise on December 17, 2019.
Bank of America Stadium is a 75,523-seat football stadium located on 33 acres (13 ha) in uptown Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It is the home facility and headquarters of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League, and is planned to be the home of the Charlotte MLS team. The stadium opened in 1996 as Ericsson Stadium before Bank of America purchased the naming rights in 2004. Former Panthers president Danny Morrison called it " classic American stadium" due to its bowl design and other features.
In addition to the Panthers, the stadium hosts the annual Duke's Mayo Bowl, which features teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and either the Southeastern Conference (SEC) or the Big Ten Conference. The stadium was planned to host the annual ACC Championship Game through at least 2019; the game was moved in 2016 but reinstated in 2017. The largest crowd to ever attend a football game at the stadium was on September 9, 2018, when 74,532 fans watched the Panthers defeat the Dallas Cowboys 16–8.