MLS

Charlotte FC aiming for high bar set by MLS expansion squads

Published Feb. 24, 2022 8:57 a.m. ET

By Doug McIntyre
FOX Sports Soccer Writer

For a league still trying to elbow its way into the mainstream sports conversation in the United States, MLS — which kicks off its 27th season Saturday — boasts some of the most successful expansion team launches in the history of the "Big Five" North American leagues.

Toronto FC ushered in European-style fandom (and season-ticket waiting lists) when the Reds debuted 15 years ago. The Seattle Sounders led the league in average attendance from their 2009 launch until 2017, when Atlanta United arrived, setting the high-water mark of 53,000-plus a year later. Fans turned out in droves for the first MLS matches in Montreal, Orlando and Cincinnati.

Now, Charlotte Football Club wants to top them all.

Nick Kelly, CEO of the company that owns Charlotte FC — plus the NFL’s Carolina Panthers and Bank of America Stadium — expects the expansion franchise to break the all-time MLS regular-season record of 72,548 fans when the LA Galaxy come to town March 5.

"There’s zero doubt in my mind that it’s going to happen," Kelly said. "We fully expect to be sold out."

Charlotte is poised to become the latest instant hit in MLS — and for good reason. While few could’ve imagined the sort of support Atlanta received from the start — the United drew more fans per game than Premier League champion Manchester City in 2019, the most recent year without pandemic-caused capacity restrictions — the Carolinas have been a low-key futbol hotbed at the grassroots level for decades.

Youth soccer is huge in both states. The University of North Carolina men’s and women’s programs have each won multiple NCAA championships. UNC, Duke, Clemson, Wake Forest and the University of South Carolina have all produced players who went on to represent the United States at the international level. Cary, North Carolina, is home to the two-time NWSL champion North Carolina Courage and regularly hosts men’s and women’s College Cups.

"Our goal is to be that North Star for everyone from youth to college to some of the other professional leagues," Kelly said.

Charlotte FC's blueprint has been Atlanta. While geography ensures that the two Southeast clubs will be fierce rivals on the field, MLS’ single-entity structure makes them partners off of it. Charlotte FC officials have spent the two-plus years since MLS announced the city would join the league for the 2022 campaign learning what works and what doesn’t.

"They are the benchmark within MLS, especially clubs like us that play in an NFL stadium," Kelly said of Atlanta United. "They need us to be good, and we need them to be good, so they’ve been amazing from a business standpoint, sharing with us some of the behind-the-scenes on how to drive fans, data and all of that."

Early on, it became clear that the relationship with paying customers is everything. Fans weren’t happy with what they perceived as a lack of communication when the club essentially went dormant after the pandemic began in 2020. So Charlotte FC decided that hiring a dedicated person to work with the club’s five supporters groups was a must. After an exhaustive global search, Sean McIntosh was chosen Chief Fan Officer from some 200 candidates.

"My job is to listen to what fans are saying and make sure that that voice is heard in the club and across every department," said McIntosh, who previously worked for teams in the NBA, WNBA and American Hockey League and with the Houston Dynamo in MLS. "Everything from the music they want to hear to the songs we play when a goal is scored to suggestions on the kit we wear on the pitch."

His experience in Houston, one of the least-supported MLS clubs, despite playing in the country’s fourth-largest market, stands out.

"Every team knows fans are important," McIntosh said. "But if you don’t have somebody singularly focused on that piece, it can be lost."

Charlotte’s more than 20,000 season-ticket holders are now regularly kept in the know about pretty much everything the club is doing. More than 2,000 attended a recent open practice — at noon on a Thursday. And fan presence was definitely felt at the club’s first preseason game in Charleston. "They were treating it like it was MLS Cup," said McIntosh.

Kelly is targeting an average of 30,000 tickets sold per game, which would trail only Atlanta and Seattle.

On the field, competing with the elite MLS teams will be harder. Atlanta claimed the title in their second season and have broken the MLS transfer record three times, including earlier this month, when the United dropped $16 million on Argentine playmaker Thiago Almada. Seattle have never missed the playoffs, hoisting MLS Cup in 2016 and ‘19 and losing in the final in 2017 and ’20.

Charlotte FC, on the other hand, will be a slower build. On Feb. 10, a reported $6 million deal to sign Venezuelan winger Darwin Machis, who traveled to the city to sign his contract, fell through because of visa issues. With Europe’s transfer window closed, Charlotte might not be able to find a comparable, high-priced attacker until July or August. But despite coach Miguel Angel Ramirez's (understandable) frustration, getting the right star is more important than getting one right now.

"When we’re making that level of investment, we have to make sure because the salary-cap situation is so tight," Kelly said. "We could be in a tough spot for years with one bad move."

Still, while the roster might initially be lacking a couple of pieces up top, its back line features the likes of Austrian central defender Christian Fuchs and MLS vet Harrison Afful. In addition to their experience, both are proven winners; Fuchs helped Leicester City overcome 5000-1 odds to claim the English title in 2016, and Afful, who played for Ghana at the 2014 World Cup, was a key part of the Columbus Crew’s MLS Cup upset of Seattle two years ago.

The idea is to build a solid foundation via a strong defensive corps and locker room culture, then add a striker and winger who can be difference-makers. The first part appears to be going according to plan.

"For six years in Columbus, the team felt like a family," Afful said. "I found another family here. It’s not always going to be easy — the first year, for sure — but with work and determination, I believe we can achieve our goals."

The goal for Year 1 is simple: make the playoffs. Besides Atlanta and Seattle, LAFC and Nashville are the only expansion teams to accomplish the feat this century. It’s an ambitious aim, as it will be for 2023 newbie St. Louis City.

But it isn’t impossible.

"By the time we get to the end of the summer transfer window, we will be in the top quartile of salary within the league," Kelly said. "We don’t want to be No. 1. What we’ve seen is there’s no direct correlation between being one of the top-three spenders and winning cups. We need to just be responsible. That also provides us with the flexibility in the future to fill any holes we have in our roster."

It’s not like ownership hasn’t shown a willingness to spend. Tepper Sports and Entertainment has already dropped $50 million to renovate Bank of America Stadium with new suites, premium seating and new locker rooms for Charlotte FC and their opponents, among other upgrades. The venue is ready for prime time, even if the team remains a work in progress.

"Patience is hard to preach with our fans — especially with all the expectations we have," Kelly said. "We want people to have a reason to come. If we play an exciting style of football and compete, I think the patience will be there. We’re not naive, though. If it’s two years of asking for patience, it’s going to be tough."

That's down the road. Right now, Charlotte FC have some history to make.

One of the most prominent soccer journalists in North America, Doug McIntyre has covered United States men’s and women’s national teams in more than a dozen countries, including multiple FIFA World Cups. Before joining FOX Sports, the New York City native was a staff writer for Yahoo Sports and ESPN. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.