Charlotte breaks the record for attending the Major League Soccer in the opening game at home

Charlotte FC broke the MLS attendance record, after announcing a crowd of 74,479 at Bank of America Stadium for their first home game against visiting Los Angeles Galaxy on Saturday.

This record broke the previous MLS record of 73019, which Atlanta United set when they hosted the 2018 MLS Cup at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Atlanta also previously held a regular season attendance record of 72,548, set in 2019.

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Like Atlanta, Charlotte shares a stadium with the city’s NFL franchise. Charlotte FC owner David Tepper owns the Carolina Panthers.

Tepper and the rest of Charlotte FC’s leadership have made no secret of their bold ambitions since the city was awarded the MLS team in December 2019. In addition to setting an attendance record in a single game, the club has targeted average attendance on their first appearance. 30,000 plus hosting a home playoff game later in the year.

“We’ve been doing it differently since day one, we’re not doing it to cause disruption and to vote out loud, we’re doing it because we really believe it will help us win on and off the court,” he told Charlotte FC president and current CEO of parent company Tepper Sports and Entertainment. (TSE) Nick Kelly on ESPN this week’s feature. “If we can’t be the first person to do it, or we can’t be the best at it, or the only person to do it, why would we do it?”

Charlotte, under first-year coach Miguel Ramirez, started her MLS career with a 3-0 defeat to DC United in the first week.