Exclusive: MLS commissioner’s faith in David Tepper and Charlotte FC becoming ‘great’
.JPG "MLS commissioner Don Garber, pictured here in 2019 when Charlotte was awarded its MLS expansion club, has high hopes for Charlotte FC’s future.")
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Charlotte FC’s MLS debut
Expanded coverage of Charlotte FC’s first match at D.C. United
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Exclusive: MLS commissioner’s faith in David Tepper and Charlotte FC becoming ‘great’
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The personnel behind Major League Soccer’s newest team witnessed the fanfare firsthand Saturday in Washington D.C. Charlotte FC team owner David Tepper visited supporters in the stands before the match, and league commissioner Don Garber arrived at Audi Field after an earlier stop in Philadelphia, where the Union and Minnesota United opened their 2022 seasons.
Charlotte FC began its inaugural year as the league’s 28th club with a 3-0 loss to D.C. United, but Charlotte’s fans, an estimated 500 of them, showed up to support their new professional sports franchise, offering a taste of what’s to come March 5 when Charlotte FC hosts the LA Galaxy at Bank of America Stadium in front of more than 70,000 fans.
Garber said that he plans to attend Charlotte’s next match, and could see the club set a new league attendance record if it’s able to hit its goal of 74,000-plus ticket sales. Garber spoke exclusively with The Observer about Charlotte FC’s launch, his confidence in ownership and the likelihood that Charlotte will be the final MLS team in the southeast.
This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.
Alex Andrejev: It’s been two years since this team was announced. I’d like to get more insight into what went into the decision to delay (Charlotte FC’s) launch during the pandemic.
Don Garber: You can only launch a team once. Team launches are such an important part of the club’s history — for the players, for the fans, for the community. To do that during a pandemic just would have been unfair, unfair for everybody that was so excited about the club, so the delay made sense for everyone associated with the league.
AA: Does having potentially more than 74,000 fans — they’ve already sold 70,000 tickets — at next weekend’s home opener help justify that?
DG: The delay made sense regardless of what the crowd will be this weekend, because we would have had 75,000 (fans) at the opening game almost at any point when the team launched, so I’ll leave it at that, but the more time to launch your club when you’re creating a team is always a positive. Every time we’ve had an extended period of time to launch a team it’s worked out, whether that’s Atlanta, LAFC … So I think it made sense for the club and we’re excited for next weekend.
AA: When you spoke with the media last week you mentioned wanting Charlotte FC to be “relevant” and have “buzz in the community.” How important is it to see an expansion team succeed in terms of soccer product on the pitch, and win early on?
DG: This club, it was so many years in the making, and Charlotte is such a great soccer city and the region is so supportive of the sport, so I believe that this team will be wildly successful. And, yes, I’m sure that everybody wants the club to be successful on the field, but expansion teams always take time to get the formula right, and I have a lot of faith in ownership, their technical (staff), their coach, their management and leadership. This team’s gonna be great.
AA: One of the questions I’ve received has been about the Tepper Sports ownership group juggling both an NFL team and MLS team—
DG: Two of the most successful teams have owners that own both an NFL team and an MLS team, so the integration of the organization and the dynamic of being able to use the power and influence of an NFL club to help build every aspect of your MLS team has proved to be incredibly successful in our league, and I would continue to think that this club is going to continue with that tradition.
AA: Do you feel like you’ve seen the investment on the MLS side?
DG: 100 percent. They’ve invested on the field. They’ve invested off the field. The team is doing extremely well commercially … It’s premature to talk about what’s going to happen on the field, but off the field, they’re among the leaders in our league.
AA: I know you’ve deferred discussions about a possible soccer-specific stadium in Charlotte to the Tepper Sports team, but thinking about Bank of America Stadium having the ability to host international soccer matches, do you know whether Charlotte has ever been in consideration to host the 2026 World Cup?
DG: I’m not aware of that one way or the other. The stadium is going to be terrific. They’ve spent $50 million on renovating it and I’m convinced that it’s going to be a great home for the club. We have been very focused on expanding our league in the southeast, and now, this is sort of our last move in that region, and I think it’s going to be terrific.
AA: So it’s safe to say that there won’t be other ones? (Las Vegas has been mentioned as likely the league’s 30th team.)
DG: Yeah, I feel like right now we’re not looking at any other clubs in the southeast.
This story was originally published February 28, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
