Charlotte FC tackles declining attendance
As newness wears off in season No. 5, the club is employing series of initiatives to bolster attendance, which dipped from second to third in MLS last year, plus previewing Saturday's game in L.A.
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Charlotte FC is adding flex ticket packages, $26 tickets, a rewards program for season ticket holders and a new ticket experience space to help boost ticket sales
Eric Sudol (right) is the new chief revenue officer for Tepper Sports and Entertainment, pictured here with owner David Tepper at a Charlotte FC game last season. (Photo courtesy of Charlotte FC.)
As it starts its fifth season, Charlotte FC has settled in as a franchise. Coach Dean Smith, now in his third year, provides continuity on the sideline, the roster returns a vast majority of its key players — minus center back Adilson Malanda — and the fanbase? It’s done some natural evolving as well.
After going gangbusters out of the gate, setting a then-MLS record with 74,479 fans at its inaugural home game in 2022, and finishing second in MLS in average attendance behind Atlanta in each of its first three seasons, Charlotte FC’s attendance at Bank of America Stadium leveled off last season.
Dropping about 5,000 fans per game last season, the Crown fell to third in the MLS in average attendance. According to transfermarkt.com, the top three were:
Atlanta United 43,992,
Seattle Sounders 30,993
Charlotte 30,664
Charlotte FC had averaged more than 35,000 fans for each of its first three seasons.
After opening the upper deck for a handful of games in each of the first three seasons, and drawing 51,002 for last year’s home opener against Atlanta, Charlotte FC decided to sell only lower bowl tickets throughout the rest of the season. The club chose to emphasize atmosphere and maintain value for season ticket holders, even for the visit from Inter Miami and Lionel Messi on Sept. 13 and for two home playoff games against New York City FC.
The upper deck will remain closed for the 2026 season, including Charlotte FC’s home opener March 7 against Austin FC. A side benefit to the decision is that it allows for construction to start in the upper deck while Tepper Sports & Entertainment begins its $800 million renovation to Bank of America Stadium. The construction project is phased over the next four to five years, with much of this year’s work to infrastructure, and therefore not “fan-facing.”
The Bank’s lower bowl has a seating capacity of about 32,000, with several thousand more possible to factor in including luxury suites. More than 35,000 attended the Miami game last September.
(The upper deck will be open for the U.S. Men’s National team exhibition against Senegal on May 31. It probably won’t be for the MLS All-Star game.)
No, that’s not Ashley Westwood, that’s a hologram of Westwood. Charlotte FC will be using three dimensional images like this one to illustrate what the renovated Bank of America stadium will look like as it sells suite and season packages for the years to come. The $800 million renovation is targeted for completion in 2030. (Illustration courtesy of Tepper Sports and Entertainment.)
Season ticket numbers match decline: It’s clear the initial wave of excitement from something shiny and new has subsided. Season ticket holders have figured out what it means to account for 17 home soccer games in a season (not including Open Cup, Leagues Cup and playoff games), both in time and financial commitments. Some have raised concerns about declining re-sale values of their tickets and permanent seat licenses, which weighs into the team’s decision to close the upper bowl.
The initial four-year contracts many season ticket holders signed in 2022 have expired. The club doesn’t release season ticket figures, but it’s believed to have held steady around 20,000 until last season, when the drop in overall attendance reflected the drop in season tickets sold as well. A spokesman for Charlotte FC said the club was still solidly in the top five of MLS in terms of season ticket holders at the end of the 2025 season.
Coming into this season, Charlotte FC has come up with a series of initiatives to re-energize sales, under the direction of new Chief Revenue Officer Eric Sudol, who was hired away from the Dallas Cowboys and owner Jerry Jones a year ago:
Flexible ticket packages: Last season, Charlotte FC began selling four- to six-game ticket packages, which offset some of the losses in season ticket sales. This year, the club is providing more flexibility as to which four to six games fans can choose from. (To include the Miami game on March 14, they have to buy tickets for six games.)
“We have diversified our product offerings to ensure we’re addressing fans that want to come with things that fit their needs,” Sudol said.
Discounted tickets: To that end, the club announced this week that it is selling a limited number of $26 tickets this season in honor of the World Cup year 2026. (On Ticketmaster, the price is listed at $32.40, including fees. The tickets are labeled “Year of Soccer.”) The new offering will include up to about 300 tickets per game, while supplies last. Fans can purchase the tickets online without restriction on timing. Before, the club sold a limited number of $15 tickets in games when the upper deck was open, but those tickets were not available until two weeks before the game and were only sold at the box office.
“It’s important for us when we did close the upper bowl, which we did not take lightly, that we understood and listened to what our fans wanted and created accessibility for everybody,” Sudol said. “This is an offshoot of that and making sure everybody who has an interest in our game has an opportunity to attend.”
Rewards program: Charlotte FC has unveiled a new rewards program for season ticket holders, available through the team app, to encourage fan engagement. Fans can tally points for attending watch parties, watching videos of the team’s press conferences, buying concessions at the stadium and more. They accumulate points to redeem for merchandise and the chance to win prizes like signed jerseys and field passes, concert tickets and meet-and-greets with Dean Smith and Sir Minty. Think credit card loyalty plan, all in an effort to increase the team’s connection to its fans.
Stadium renovation preview: Tepper Sports & Entertainment unveiled plans this week for what it’s calling an experience center, to give potential buyers a high-tech look at what Bank of America renovations will look like. The Experience Center and an adjacent ticket office will be located in two rented spaces on the ground level of the Honeywell parking deck within a block of the stadium. Premium guests will step into replicas of the new lounge and suite spaces and get a virtual look at views from their prospective vantage points. They’ll see interactive elements (see Westwood hologram pictured), which make it almost like a museum celebrating the two franchises, Charlotte FC and the Panthers. It also gives fans something to look forward to as they endure stadium construction over the next four or five years. The experience center and adjacent ticket office are targeted to open later this summer, before the start of the 2026 Carolina Panthers season.
Next up: Parking. Sudol is fully aware that one of the big hurdles to the Charlotte FC fan experience is parking, both what it’s lacking in availability and convenience, and traffic. He said that TSE is working on it. Given Sudol’s infectious energy, which you’ll recognize if you’ve met him, you almost believe him.
“I want to go on record and say we are going to address, and are addressing, the parking, traffic and ingress/egress [entry/exit] challenge that exists at Bank of America Stadium,” Sudol said. “It’s an important part of elevating our experience, and those wheels are already in motion with all the key stakeholders at the table.”
Near miss on what would have been first MLS goal for veteran defender Byrne
Nathan Byrne driving with the ball last Saturday in St. Louis. (Photo courtesy of Charlotte FC.)
Nathan Byrne is entering his fourth full season with Charlotte FC and is still hunting his first MLS goal. It’s not altogether surprising, given that he plays a defensive position (right back), and he’s not tall enough to be an aerial threat on corners like most center backs. (He’s listed at 5-foot-11, which might be generous.)
But Byrne nearly made big news last Saturday in St. Louis on a breakaway in Charlotte’s 1-1 tie in the season opener. Byrne, who usually overlaps forward on the field to set up teammates with passes into the box, carried the ball there himself and had a great scoring chance go wide enough to make you wonder if it was a pass. In case there was any doubt, Coach Dean Smith erased that in his Thursday press conference when he poked fun at one of his affable fellow Brits.
When asked if Byrne had a goal in him after all, Smith said: “Not after his finish last week.”
Smith went on to say:
I said to him, I think if he would have scored, the referee may have just blew [the whistle] and said, “That’s it. [Game over.] Nathan Byrne scored.” It was a great run. It was a terrific run. I had a former player score a goal like that, fullback, Alan Hutton, in Aston Villa vs. Birmingham City game. But Nathan just didn’t have the finish at the end of it. But that’s something we encourage him to do, if he sees the opportunity.
For Byrne’s part, when asked if he felt he’s closing in on his first goal, he said: “If it comes, it comes. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. We win games? I really couldn’t care less.”
Up Next: Charlotte FC (0-0-1) at L.A. Galaxy (0-0-1)
When/Where: 10:30 p.m. Eastern at Dignity Health Sports Park, Carson, Calif.
How to watch: Apple TV.
How to listen: WFNZ 92.7 in English, WOLS 106.1 in Spanish.
Notable:
Charlotte FC, which tied just twice in 34 regular-season games last year, took a 1-1 draw in its opener in St. Louis. Pep Biel scored Charlotte’s lone goal to tie it, and goalkeeper Kristijan Kahlina made 10 saves to seal a point.
After a second consecutive road game to start the season, this time with a late kickoff for East Coast viewers, Charlotte will play its next five games at Bank of America Stadium.
The only player expected to miss the game with injury is new center back Henry Kessler (hamstring), though Smith said this week he’s close to getting back onto the practice field.
L.A. Galaxy has retooled since falling to 14th place in the Western Conference last year, one year after winning the MLS Cup. But it is still without former Barcelona midfielder Riqui Puiq, who will miss his second consecutive season following repeat surgery for a torn knee ligament he suffered in the 2024 playoffs.
The Galaxy allowed one goal in a 1-1 draw against New York City FC in its opener and played Sporting San Miguelito to a 0-0 tie in a midweek game to advance to the Round of 16 of the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
L.A. will go without center back Emiro Garces, who picked up a red card against NYCFC.
Carroll Walton is a longtime baseball writer with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution now in her fifth season covering Charlotte FC. She would love to hear from you. E-mail her with questions, suggestions, story ideas and comments!
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Great stuff as always Carroll!
While I hope I am wrong, I think the attendance drop this year will be steeper than you allude to historically in your article. I am very interested to gauge true attendance after the opener and the Miami game which will not be an accurate barometer.
David Tepper definitely took advantage of the enthusiasm of a new team, but I think its going to come back to haunt him for more than the 4 years he got out of it. Closing the upper bowl, making 300 seats available for $26 isn't going to assuage the thousands of STM's who have walked over the years due to their usurious pricing especially in regards to concessions. I'm going to enjoy watching on Apple TV the majority of the games this year and into the foreseeable future.