CHARLOTTE, NC — Soccer fans have snapped up 60,000 tickets for the Guinness International Champions Cup at Bank of America stadium this week. As WCCB’s Terrance Bates reports, some say this could be the Queen City’s audition for the World Cup.
Preparations are being finalized at Bank of America Stadium, and local soccer fans are already revved up for one of the biggest soccer games in Charlotte history. “With the success we’ve had selling tickets here, we think we will attract more soccer events as well, and that’s exciting for us,” said Charlotte Regional Visitor’s Authority CEO Tom Murray.
For the city and its businesses, Saturday’s match up between Liverpool FC and AC Milan is much bigger than simply a match. “I’ve talked to the Guinness guys in the Southeast region (14) and they’re really using this as an option to whether they’ll continue doing the tournament and whether they’ll bring one or more games to Charlotte next year,” said Andrew Wilson of Jackalope Jack’s in Elizabeth.
Murray says he’s even heard rumblings about Major League Soccer looking at Charlotte. “This will give some evidence that we have fans that are interested in soccer, and the ticket sales we’ve had will prove that,” he said.
From bars and restaurants, to hotel stays, the CRVA is expecting the match to have an economic impact slightly greater than a sold-out Panthers game. But more importantly, it’s another chance to show the Queen City off to a global audience.
“It helps add an attraction to our city that companies say, ‘Well this is the kind of thing our employees can experience when we relocate our headquarters,” said Murray.
Even CMPD is keenly aware of the extra attention and fans the game is bringing. “We have stuff working on the background, checking social media, working intel with our federal partners to see if they’re hearing or seeing anything. Obviously if something pops up on our radar, we’ll be ready to deal with it,” said Cpt. Mike Campagna.
And while many of these fans plan to cheer their hearts out at the game, or a local bar, this Saturday, they’re also hoping this will be the Queen City’s audition for soccer’s biggest prize. “If this is successful, I don’t see why we couldn’t be a venue for World Cup, and that would be incredible,” said Wilson.
But for this week, the focus is on Bank of America Stadium, and reds of Liverpool FC versus the Rosseneri of Milan.
Wccbcharlotte.com will connect you to the fan experience events planned leading up to Saturday’s game. Check out the Web Links tab for more info.
