Fresh renderings: Panthers tap Atrium Health for practice facility
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The Carolina Panthers Uptown practice facility will be called the Atrium Health Training Facility.
Why it matters: It's the latest layer for the long envisioned district surrounding Bank of America Stadium where the Panthers and Charlotte FC call home (both the NFL team and the MLS club are owned by Tepper Sports & Entertainment).
- "It's a vision for a new downtown Charlotte," TSE owner David Tepper said during Thursday morning's announcement.
Catch up quick: Bank of America Stadium will transform by 2030 after a $800 million renovation. The renovation includes $650 million from the city's hospitality and tourism tax. These funds must be used on projects that generate tourism dollars. TSE will cover $150 million plus overflow costs.
- The city's deal with TSE keeps the Panthers and Charlotte FC in town through 2045.
- TSE is working with Live Nation on a new 4,400-seat indoor performance venue next to the stadium, which is expected to open by 2029.
Context: Atrium Health also has the naming rights to Charlotte FC's training facility (Atrium Health Performance Park) in east Charlotte. The health care provider also had the naming rights to the Panthers temporary dome at the practice facility, which the team tore down in 2024.
- The dome was always intended to be temporary, as Axios has previously reported. The team had previously planned to build its new headquarters in Rock Hill. Despite initial construction, that project was ultimately abandoned, resulting in lengthly legal action. Now the focus is on Uptown.
What to expect: The new 101,400-square-foot indoor facility will include a full-size turf field, plus training rooms, nutrition space, football equipment storage, a video control room, meeting spaces and a space recognizing Atrium Health Keep Pounding Kids.
- Outside, there will be two full-size grass practice fields.
- TSE executives say the goal is to provide space for the community. In the past, for instance, the team's practice fields have hosted high school tournaments.
What's next: Construction on the Atrium Health Training Facility is moving into its vertical phase, meaning you'll soon see more steel reaching toward the sky.
- Atrium Health Training Facility construction is scheduled for completion ahead of the team's 2027 training camp.
- Daily training camp activities will be closed to the public this preseason due to construction, but the Panthers will host Fan Fest at Bank of America Stadium.
The big picture: Charlotte's sports facility renaissance comes at a time when the city's professional teams are on the come up. The Panthers made the playoffs for the first time in years and hosted a playoff game for the first time in a decade.
- The Hornets, who hare building a practice facility of their own and just completed a $245 million renovation on Spectrum Center, are on the brink of making the playoffs for the first time in a decade.
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Editor's note: This story has been updated to include additional renderings.