Bank of America Stadium: Capacity, Size, Events, Tickets and Legacy

Bank of America is a multi-purpose stadium located in Charlotte, United States of America. The stadium was hailed as a classic American Arena thanks to its bowl-like shape and fortress-like appearance from the outside. The stadium was opened in 1996, and it was light years ahead of all the stadiums during that time. The Carolina Panthers, the NFL side, were pioneers behind the stadium. Having made it their home ever since, they welcomed the MLS side Charlotte FC to share the stadium. Soccer wasn’t a mainstay of the stadium, but it eventually found its way in the past decade or so.

With the stadium set to host the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, it becomes essential to know more about it. Let us learn more about the Bank of America Stadium, its history, capacity, ticket prices, and upcoming events in the stadium.

Overview of Bank of America Stadium

Jerry Richardson, an ex-American Football player and a North Carolina native, wanted to have an NFL team from his region. He

founded Richardson Sports and applied for the open expansion spot in 1993. They were granted a team, and Richardson chose Charlotte as the base location.

It led to the birth of the Carolina Panthers. They needed a modern stadium, and Richardson’s brainchild was set into motion. They began construction of a new stadium for the NFL side. It was to be built not only keeping American Football but also soccer in mind for the future.

Bank of America Stadium Location

Do you know about the Bank of America Stadium location? The Panthers organisation considered multiple sites for the stadium. Finally, the Charlotte Centre City, known as Uptown Charlotte, was selected as the location. The site was occupied by the historic Good Samaritan Hospital.

According to Charlotte historian Michael Moore, the site was the location of the city’s first known lynching in 1913. A new stadium coming up there was symbolic of purifying it.

Construction and Opening of Bank of America Stadium

Richardson and his team conducted multiple trial games across North Carolina to see which was the best venue for the franchise. Charlotte’s NASCAR Speedway, the University of North Carolina’s campus, and even the Carowinds amusement park were considered for the stadium. After Uptown was finalised, steps were taken to construct the stadium. Populus, then known as HOK Sport, was chosen as the architects of the stadium. Wagner Murray Architects aided them in design. Bliss and Nyitray Inc. were the structural engineers, and Turner and F.N. Thompson were appointed as the General contractors. An initial budget of $500 million was estimated.

The groundbreaking ceremony took place on April 22, 1994, and the construction work took two years to complete. The stadium was known as Carolinas Stadium during the time of construction. It still goes by that name for FIFA-affiliated events, as corporate naming shouldn’t be used. However, at the time of opening, its naming rights were sold to Swedish telecom company LM Ericsson, and it was called the Ericsson Stadium. After two years of construction, the stadium was declared open in 1996 and hosted its first game on August 3^rd. It was considered one of the best stadiums in America during that time. The stadium got its current name as it entered a naming rights deal with Charlotte-based finance giant Bank of America till 2029.

Features and Renovations of Bank of America Stadium

The Bank of America stadium’s architecture and external features stand out all the time. It has three huge main entrances which incorporate the colours of black, process blue and silver. Each entrance is flanked on both sides by two larger-than-life bronze panther statues named “Indomitable Spirit”. Each panther is in a crouching stance with green eyes, and the structures were the largest sculptures ever commissioned in the United States.

The arches that connect the column supports on the upper deck resemble the shape of half a football. The façade outside is inspired by the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and resembles a fortress. The stadium has six light domes on top of the main entrances. They glowed the Panthers’ ‘process blue’ every night. The stadium was a pioneering project for the use of Personal Seat Licenses in the NFL.

The scoreboards, locker rooms, and luxury suites of the stadium were all world-class and inspired other teams to model their stadium based on the Bank of America Stadium. The stadium needed no major renovations for a couple of decades. However, cracks started to appear slowly as the features that once shone the brightest became a hindrance.

A lack of roofing was most apparent as the NFL deemed the stadium unworthy of ever hosting the Super Bowl. Plenty of renovations were planned regularly from the 2013/14 off-season. Firstly, the original scorecards, video boards, and displays from 1996 were all replaced with modern ones.

Bank of America Stadium Capacity and Field Size

Let's take a deeper look at the Bank of America Stadium capacity. The Bank of America Stadium has a capacity of 75,000. This remains the same for both American Football and Soccer. However, for a few soccer games, only the lower bowl is used, reducing the capacity to 38,000. The pitch size is longer than usual, as it is 121 metres long and 81 metres wide.

Key Football Events at Bank of America Stadium

Domestic Tournaments

The stadium was built as a venue fit to host both soccer and American football. However, soccer didn’t find a groove till many years later. The stadium hosted the NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship in 1999 and 2000. It had to wait for a decade again before becoming a relevant venue for the sport.

It became the home of Charlotte FC since its inception in 2022. Ever since then, it has hosted all its home games in front of record-breaking audiences.

International Tournaments and Matches

The stadium was used by European teams as part of their pre-season tours. Since 2010, it has seen friendlies being played there. The first real taste of international action came in 2011, as it hosted a couple of group stage games of the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup. It hosted multiple International friendlies and International Champions Cup games as well.

The 2024 Copa America tournament brought a couple of knockout games to this venue. There was controversy regarding the artificial pitch, creating troubles for the players. The stadium’s pitch masters have worked intensively since then to rebrand it. Their efforts will be tested as they gear up for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup games soon.

Bank of America Stadium Tickets and Pricing

How to Buy Bank of America Stadium Tickets

The stadium has its website, which gives a guide to all the upcoming events there. The tickets can be bought from the official website accordingly.

Overview of Prices

The Bank of America Stadium is quite pricey as the average ticket cost is $254.46 for major events. For the MLS games, the cheapest games in the back of the stadium can be bought for $6.87. For events like Club World Cup, the cheapest prices start from $100 and can go up a few thousand dollars in private suits.

Visiting Bank of America Stadium

How to reach Bank of America Stadium

The Bank of America is accessible by Lynx Blue Line light rail, the CityLYNX Gold Line streetcar, or Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) buses. Self-driving is also an option to the stadium as it is easily accessible by road, but can get quite expensive due to limited parking.

Guided Tours: Exploring Bank of America Stadium

The Bank of America Stadium runs guided tours on a limited and by request basis only. Interested visitors can fill out the form here and apply to visit the stadium.

Nearby Attractions for Football Fans

Charlotte is full of attractions that can make a tourist's day. The NASCAR Hall of Fame museum, along with the Mint Museum Uptown, can easily take a day to visit. The Museum of Illusions, Romare Bearden Park, and Freedom Park can be strolled by those who would like to have a relaxing day.

Hotels Near Bank of America Stadium

The fans visiting the Bank of America Stadium will have no shortage of options to pick their stay from. From cheap options like homestays to luxurious ones like 5-star hotels, plenty of choices are available. Here are a few of them:

• JW Marriott Charlotte

• The Ivey’s Hotel

• Grand Bohemian Hotel

• Hilton Charlotte

• Holiday Inn, Charlotte

• Kasa Edison House Charlotte

• Red Roof Inn Charlotte Airport

• Bposhtels Charlotte

Bank of America Stadium Events Beyond Football

Other Events

Since the stadium was built for the Carolina Panthers, they played the first-ever match at the venue. On August 3, 1996, they debuted at the stadium against the Chicago Bears in the preseason. Ever since then, it has been their home. It hosted over 150 consecutive sellouts starting in 2002.

The stadium also hosted many college football games featuring teams from North and South Carolina. The ACC Championship Game and the Duke’s Mayo Bowl are two famous College Football games. It also hosts High School football championship games at times.

The stadium hosted its first concert in 1997 and then went on a dry spell for 15 years. The Rolling Stones were the first band to perform there in 1997. Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw returned here in 2012 before a near-decade gap appeared again. The Rolling Stones themselves came back for a second time in 2021 and brought some momentum to the venue. Billy Joel, Garth Brooks, Elton John, Beyonce, Kendrick Lamar, Shakira, and Metallica have all performed recently and are enhancing their appeal.

The stadium served as a COVID-19 vaccination site during the pandemic and also hosted the Topgolf Live Stadium Series in 2021.

Conclusion

Scope of Bank of America Stadium in the future

The Bank of America Stadium was a beacon of light in the late 1990s. However, it lost its charm to its modern-day competitors. David Tepper has a lot of plans to renovate the stadium. Keeping Charlotte’s growing size in mind and the city’s importance in sports and music scenes, he believes a new stadium is needed. The initial plans were to demolish the stadium and rebuild it on a new site.

But after consulting others, Tepper got his dream of renovating the stadium with a high budget. It is said to get a complete facelift from modern seating to bleeding-edge technological advances everywhere, keeping sustainability in mind. The stadium was brutally snubbed for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. But Tepper would be hoping to get the redevelopment done soon so it can become a key venue for the 2028 Summer Olympics.