Sports inCharlotte, North Carolina have a long and varied history. The city is home to teams at nearly every level of American sports including theCarolina Panthers of theNational Football League andCharlotte Hornets of theNational Basketball Association. In addition to serving as the home base for several teams the city plays host to many events of national and international importance including the longest race inNASCAR, the annualCoca-Cola 600 and golf'sWells Fargo Championship.
Baseball has been played at a high level in Charlotte since at least 1892 when theCharlotte Hornets[1] debuted in a competition known as the South Atlantic League, later a team called theCharlotte Presbyterians[2] took part in the North Carolina Association before reverting to the Hornets name and bouncing around a number of leagues until 1972. In 1976 following a short spell with no professional baseball in the city wrestling promoterJim Crockett, Jr. brought theCharlotte O's to the Charlotte, the O's would later become the modern dayCharlotte Knights.[3]
Between 1969 and 1974Greensboro'sAmerican Basketball Association team, theCarolina Cougars played a number of home games each season at the originalCharlotte Coliseum, the team would also play games in Raleigh andWinston-Salem.[4] It would be until 1988 that Charlotte would be awarded its firstmajor league team in the form of theCharlotte Hornets of theNBA. The team played out of the 24,000-seatCharlotte Coliseum, known affectionately as "The Hive", and would lead the league in attendance for eight seasons before an acrimonious fall out with ownerGeorge Shinn triggered a number of events which led to the team relocating toNew Orleans in 2002. However, it didn't take long for the Queen City to return to the NBA when a group led by businessmanBob Johnson, the founder ofBET, was awarded a franchise which would come to be known as theCharlotte Bobcats. In 2013, eleven years after the Hornets left the city, the Bobcats, now playing at theSpectrum Center, announced the team would assume the city's beloved nickname following the rebranding of the New Orleans team as the Pelicans. Charlotte was also home to aWNBA team, theCharlotte Sting from 1988 until they folded in 2006.
The history of professionalfootball in Charlotte began in 1967, when theAmerican Football League staged a preseason exhibition game between theHouston Oilers and theNew York Jets. Pro football returned under bizarre circumstances following the relocation of aWorld Football League team, theCharlotte Hornets, to the city from New York in the middle of the 1974 season. Disillusioned with life at the dilapidatedDowning Stadium and saddled with heavy debt from financing renovations to the facility the ownership of the New York Stars sold the franchise to a Charlotte-based group. The Hornets played out ofAmerican Legion Memorial Stadium and were a moderate success on the field and in the stands but struggled financially and eventually shuttered operations after an abbreviated 1975 season when the entire league shut down. Professional football would return to Charlotte in 1992 in the form of theCharlotte Rage, anArena Football League team that played out of the Coliseum. The Rage would qualify for the playoffs twice (in 1993 & 1994) before closing in 1996. The Arena League would return to Charlotte in 2003 when theCarolina Cobras relocated from Raleigh. The Cobras short tenure in Charlotte is memorable for appearances by futurePro BowlerRob Bironas and futureWWE wrestlerThaddeus Bullard, better known as Titus O'Neil.
In 1987 businessmanJerry Richardson announced his intentions to bring theNational Football League tothe Carolinas with a bid centered in Charlotte. The Richardson-lead group staged several NFL exhibitions around the Carolinas and in 1991 formally filed an expansion bid which was unanimously approved by the NFL's 28 owners making theCarolina Panthers the 29th NFL franchise. The Panthers spent the1995 season south of the border atClemson'sMemorial Stadium whileBank of America Stadium in Uptown was being prepared for the team's1996 season. To date the Panthers have appeared in two Super Bowls,Super Bowl XXXVIII andSuper Bowl 50, and lay claim to four conference championships and six division championships.
Since 2005 Charlotte has been home to a women's football team called theCarolina Queens. The Queens play home games atHopewell High's stadium inHuntersville.
Despite being a warm-weather,Southern city, Charlotte has a longice hockey history that dates back to 1956 when theoriginalCharlotte Checkers were formed and began play in theEastern Hockey League.[5] The Checkers would play in the EHL for several seasons before moving to the more geographically-friendlySouthern Hockey League[6] where the team would win two championships before folding with the rest of the league in 1977. It would be 17-years before the sport would return to the city at the professional level with the formation of anECHL team named in honor of the original Charlotte hockey team. The second version of theCheckers would take up residence at the original Coliseum (then known as Independence Arena) and would quickly become a success by winning theKelly Cup in 1996. The team moved to theSpectrum Center in 2005. In 2010 the Checkers would move to theAmerican Hockey League and become the top affiliate of Raleigh'sNational Hockey League team, theCarolina Hurricanes. In 2015 the Checkers moved back to the Coliseum.
Throughout the years Charlotte has been home to a number of soccer teams, and is currently home of theCharlotte Eagles of theUSL League Two, their sister team, theCharlotte Lady Eagles of theUSL W-League, and theCharlotte Independence of theUnited Soccer League. Both Eagles teams have won a number of championships at the lower-levels of American soccer. In 1981 Charlotte'sAmerican Soccer League team, theCarolina Lightnin', won the league championship before a sold-out Memorial Stadium when they defeated New York United 2–1.[7]Major League Soccer awarded anexpansion team to Charlotte in 2019 that is set to begin play in 2021.[8]
Lacrosse is a sport with a relatively short history in Charlotte but one that is experiencing growth following the formation of two professional lacrosse teams. TheCharlotte Hounds are afield lacrosse team that plays inMajor League Lacrosse, the top level of the sport in the United States, out of Memorial Stadium. The Hounds began play in 2012 and were founded by Jim McPhilliamy. Charlotte's other lacrosse team, theCharlotte Copperheads, plays the indoor version of the game,box lacrosse, in theProfessional Lacrosse League.
Tennis is played at several venues throughout Charlotte by both individuals and clubs at the recreational and competitive levels. Charlotte's most prominent tennis venue is the 13-court Jeff Adams Tennis Center atRenaissance Park.
Charlotte is home to one ofNorth Carolina's oldestrugby union organizations, theCharlotte Rugby Club, or the Olde Originals. CRC was founded in 1971 by formercollege rugby players and is based at the Skillbeck Athletic Grounds in Coulwood, a neighborhood in the northwestern portion of the city.
TheCharlotte Roller Girls organization is a flat-trackroller derby club that was founded by several local women in 2006 and plays out of theGrady Cole Center.
Since 1931,Jim Crockett Promotions has been a full-fledgedprofessional wrestling performer, based in the North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia states, and has been calledMid-Atlantic Wrestling.National Wrestling Alliance,World Championship Wrestling,WWE has big matches, and manypay-per-view event. Many professional wrestlers living.
| Team | Division | Primary Conference | Location | Varsity Teams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlotte 49ers | NCAA I | Conference USA | University City, Charlotte | 17 |
| Davidson Wildcats | NCAA I | Atlantic 10 | Davidson, North Carolina | 19 |
| Queens Royals | NCAA I | A-Sun Conference | Myers Park, Charlotte | 19 |
| JCSU Golden Bulls | NCAA II | CIAA | Biddleville, Charlotte | 13 |
| Johnson & Wales Wildcats | USCAA | Independent | Uptown Charlotte | 5 |
Mecklenburg is home to fivecollegiate athletic programs and is where the offices of theBig South Conference are based.
TheUniversity of North Carolina at Charlotte, founded in 1946 as the Charlotte Center of the University of North Carolina, is the home of 17 varsity teams known as theCharlotte 49ers. Charlotte has full Division I status and is a member ofConference USA and has participated in theNCAA tournament 11 times and appeared in 1 Bowl Game. UNC Charlotte is one of the largestpublic universities in the state of North Carolina.
Davidson College, founded in 1837 and based in theeponymous north Mecklenburg town, is the oldest of these institutions and is the home of theWildcats. A fullNCAA Division I program, Davidson is a member of theAtlantic 10 Conference and fields 19 varsity teams.
Charlotte and Davidson compete in men's basketball for the Hornets' Nest Trophy. Charlotte leads the all-time series 29-17
Queens University of Charlotte is a private,Presbyterian school based in the Charlotte neighborhood of Myers Park. Queens began life in 1857 as the Charlotte Female Institute. In the 1980s Queens began admitting male students. TheQueens Royals play in theSouth Atlantic Conference at theNCAA Division II level.
Johnson C. Smith University is anHBCU located near Uptown in Biddleville. JCSU was founded in 1867 and theGolden Bulls play at Division II level as a member of theCentral Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
A newcomer, the Charlotte campus ofJohnson & Wales University was established in 2004. TheJWU Wildcats play men's basketball and women's volleyball as independent members of theUnited States Collegiate Athletic Association.
The annualCIAA Basketball Tournament was held in Charlotte from 2006-2020. The tournament attracted over 100,000 fans and spectators and had a $55 million economic impact on the city.[9] The sustained success of the tournament led to the CIAA's decision to relocate its headquarters fromHampton, VA to Charlotte in August 2015.[10]
The city is also the home of theNational Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) headquarters. The NJCAA is the second-largest national intercollegiate athletic organization in the United States with over 500 member schools in 43 states.[11]
Charlotte-Mecklenburg's high school teams are aligned into the following conferences as assigned by theNorth Carolina High School Athletic Association.
Mecklenburg County has long been a superpower in North Carolina high school sports dating back to Garinger's (then known as Charlotte High School) multiple football championships in the 1910s. Garinger in its historic and present day forms would go on to become the earliest of the Charlotte powers in the first half of the 20th century before seeing its fortunes fade in the latter half. Garinger most recently claimed a state championship with its 1989 boys basketball team.
The late 20th and early 21st centuries were marked by the rise of Butler, Independence, and West Charlotte as state football powers. West Charlotte's Lions dominated the state football scene between the mid-80s and 90s, a period during which they won five championships in a ten-year span. The late-90s saw Independence begin a 107-game winning streak that included seven consecutive state championships under coach Tom Knotts. Independence's streak would last until 2007 whenCincinnati'sElder High School defeated the Patriots 41–34 atNippert Stadium. Butler and Mallard Creek have recently made appearances in state championship games with Butler claiming three titles.
Garinger and West Charlotte each have five state basketball championships while South Meck has four.
Along withIndianapolis, Charlotte is considered one of the hubs ofAmerican motorsports with mostNASCAR teams and severalopen wheel andsports car teams calling Charlotte and the area surrounding it home.
Uptown Charlotte is home of theNASCAR Hall of Fame and the now defunctCharlotte Speedway was the site of the first NASCAR Strictly Stock (a precursor to the modernNASCAR Cup Series) race on June 19, 1949,Bob Flock won the pole andJim Roper was declared the winner afterGlenn Dunaway's car failed post-race inspection.
Since then a number of Charlotte-area venues have played host to NASCAR's top series includingMetrolina Speedway on the Metrolina Fairgrounds in Charlotte, andCharlotte Motor Speedway in Concord. CMS hosts three Sprint Cup Series events per year including theNASCAR Sprint All-Star Race and has been hosting NASCAR's premier series since 1960.
As with all ofNorth Carolina, Charlotte is a hotbed of golf and hosts annual events across several tours. ThePGA Tour stops in Charlotte once a year for theWells Fargo Championship at theQuail Hollow Club and in 2017 the club will host the 99thPGA Championship. River Run Country Club in Davidson plays host theWeb.com Tour'sChiquita Classic and Raintree Country Club is the home of theSymetra Classic, an event on theLPGA's developmentalSymetra Tour.
TheU.S. National Whitewater Center is an officialUnited States Olympic Committee training site for whitewaterslalom racing and has hostedOlympic team qualifying events.
TheBelk Bowl is played every December in Charlotte and features teams from theAtlantic Coast Conference andSoutheastern Conference.
Brooklandwood in the nearby Union County town ofMineral Springs is the site of the Queens Cup Steeplechase, one ofsteeplechase horse racing's major annual events. The program consists of several races, and is held the last Saturday of April and also features aJack Russell Terrier judging contest. This event ran from 1995 to 2023.[12] The Queen's City Polo Cup is scheduled to replace this event in 2026.[13]
Several cycling events take place in Charlotte including thePresbyterian Hospital Invitational Criterium and 24-Hours of Booty.
| Venue | Location | Capacity | Owner | Environment | Closed | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knights Stadium | Fort Mill, South Carolina | 10,002 | York County, South Carolina | Open air, natural grass | 2015 | Replaced |
| Charlotte Coliseum | Eagle Lake, Charlotte | 24,000 | City of Charlotte | Indoor arena | 2005 | Replaced |
| Jim Crockett Park | Dilworth, Charlotte | 5,000 | Crockett Family | Open air, natural grass | 1985 | Arson |
| Metrolina Speedway | Metrolina Fairgrounds, Charlotte | 10,000 | Metrolina Fair | Open air, dirt | 1990s | Abandoned |
| Belk Gymnasium | University City, Charlotte | 3,000 | UNC Charlotte | Indoor arena | 1996 | Converted |
| Charlotte Speedway | Charlotte | ? | ? | Open air, dirt | 1957 | Closed |
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