Ready to hop on a bandwagon?

The Carolina Panthers won two NFL games last season. The Charlotte Bobcats have made the NBA playoffs once, and they were swept by Orlando.

But plenty of good seats are available. That's the advantage of living in a city with Major League teams that lose - or at least lost last season. Until the Panthers or Bobcats win, you can always buy a ticket on game day outside the arena or stadium.

In some cities, fans relinquish season tickets only when their sons and daughters pry them from their cold dead fingers. Charlotte isn't one of those cities.

Newcomers might believe, based on reputation, that the most popular sport in Charlotte is racing or college basketball. Despite the availability of tickets, the most popular sport is the NFL. Television ratings prove it.

Within four blocks of Bank of America Stadium, where the Panthers play, are dozens of parking lots that on Sunday mornings fill with cat-themed vehicles, grills, burgers and beer. And if you want to a head start on the season, you can drive an hour down Interstate 85 to Carolina's training camp in Spartanburg, S.C.

Many do. For the first time, the Panthers have a marquee player who has attracted national attention from advertisers and the media - Cam Newton, the No. 1 pick in the 2011 draft.

The Bobcats, meanwhile, are starting over. Owner Michael Jordan has gutted the team, adding young talent and quietly preparing for whatever comes next. Jordan sits at courtside, close enough to talk to his players and try to influence officials. He's 48 years old and as competitive as anybody you know. Although he desperately would like to be on the court, the best he can do is sit next to it.

Our other sports are minor league, which means prices are, too.

If you want to watch the Charlotte Knights, the Class AAA club in the Chicago White Sox system, you'll have to leave the state. The Knights play in South Carolina. They hope to build a stadium downtown Charlotte.

Some misguided baseball fans believe Charlotte should hold out for Major League Baseball. We won't. We don't have the resources to support it.

The Charlotte Checkers, the top minor league hockey team in the Raleigh-based Carolina Hurricanes organization, play in Time Warner Cable Arena, the same building the Bobcats do.

Other options include soccer's Charlotte Eagles, Roller Derby and pro wrestling and boxing cards. The boxing cards usually attract the same 350 fans, many of them former boxers. So if you ask an innocuous question - such as the time - you might want to keep your hands high. Some people talk with their hands. Retired boxers often jab and hook with theirs.

On the campus of the Charlotte 49ers you can find good basketball (Atlantic 10) and almost every sport but football. And football is coming in 2013.

Twenty miles north of Charlotte are the Davidson Wildcats, who in 2008 made a thrilling NCAA men's basketball run behind Stephen Curry. Curry, who grew up in Charlotte, starts for the NBA's Golden State Warriors. In Charlotte are two colleges with fine basketball traditions - Johnson C. Smith and Queens.

Every city offers options. The beauty of Charlotte sports is that teams feel fresh and almost new. The Panthers began to play in 1995, the Bobcats in 2005. Traditions are being established.

In some cities, teams are so entrenched that by cheering for them you become part of a predictable trend. The bandwagon has long been full, and maybe if you behave yourself you'll be allowed to walk 10 yards in front, dropping flowers in its path.

Charlotte is fluid. At this time, in this place, you not only can climb on a team's bandwagon, you might get an opportunity to drive.