The ACC pulled neutral site title events, like the 2016 ACC Football Championship, out of the state of North Carolina.
With the NCAA having pulled seven championship related events out of the state of North Carolina, it was a matter of time before the ACC considered doing likewise. Two days ago the conference did just that. They up and pulled all neutral site championships out of the state over concerns with the HB2 law.
The biggest of these this year is the ACC Championship Football Game, due to be held in Charlotte. The game has found a home in the Queen City over the past five years, but now it will be traveling once again. Possible landing spots might include Landover, MD or Tampa, FL. That was a big hit to the identity of Charlotte as being a big time sports city.
The Carolina Panthers released a statement expressing disappointment but understanding in the decision to move the game away from the Panthers home turf at Bank of America Stadium.
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Less obvious is the addition of the ACC Basketball Tournament to events that will no longer be hosted in the state. The ACC Tournament has traditionally flourished in Greensboro and Charlotte where fans from most of the league’s schools could actually see the game. It also was a good draw for Duke, State, North Carolina, and Wake Forest fans when those teams were on top.
That’s some fifty years of history that the book appears to be closing on. Between the NCAA and the ACC, a lot of notoriety has left the state. The history of the ACC cannot be written without Greensboro and Charlotte, but it appears it will be for the near future. Perhaps this will allow for a New York based tournament that some have wanted to see for awhile.
As a Charlottean this hurts a lot. It was a point of pride in the city to claim the Panthers and the Hornets (again), but it was also logical to play the ACC championship here rather than it Jacksonville (SEC country) or Tampa (great for Miami or FSU, but who else?). Hopefully some compromise will come and the sports can come back.