CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Officials from the Army and Navy academies were in Charlotte on Friday to do a site visit and tour the city, a spokesman for the Charlotte Sports Foundation confirmed. The city could host a future matchup of the annual Army-Navy football game.

What You Need To Know

  • Officials from both academies were in town Friday, touring Bank of America Stadium and the city

  • It's unclear if and when the Army-Navy football game would come to the Queen City

  • Bank of America Stadium has held many high-profile events in recent years, and more are expected

The Army and Navy football game, an annual tradition, has been an ongoing rivalry for more than a century.

In the last several years, the game has been held in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland at various stadiums.

This year’s game, on Dec. 10 in Philadelphia, will be the teams’ 123rd matchup. Navy holds the edge in the series. 

Miller Yoho with the Charlotte Sports Foundation on Friday said officials from both academies were in town for the day and would be touring Bank of America Stadium, as well as the city.

When reached Friday, a Tepper Sports and Entertainment spokesperson directed Spectrum News 1 to the Charlotte Sports Foundation for comment. 

At the Charlotte VFW Post 9488, Commander Robert Pierce said he would love for the football game to come to Charlotte.

“I think it’d be great. Love to see the Navy whip up on the Army,” Pierce said.

Pierce, a Navy veteran, served from 1971 to 1993 on six different ships, including during the Vietnam and Gulf wars. A Navy fan at heart, Pierce said he watches the game every year.

“I love football anyway, and I’d love to see that game. It’d be good,” Pierce said, “It represents what we represent. The military is pretty important, I think, to this country, and I think that it’s good for the public eye, makes us look pretty good I think on the football field.” 

Pierce said that his VFW post has 219 members, and that Charlotte’s veterans would love to see the game come to their community.

“I think that Charlotte’s a pretty patriotic city, and we have a lot of veterans, and it would be very good for the city,” Pierce said.

In addition, as a sports fan, Pierce said he thought this was a good opportunity for Bank of America Stadium.

“City’s growing. I think that would be a great place to have the game,” Pierce added.

The stadium already plays host for the Carolina Panthers, Charlotte Football Club, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) football championship game and the Duke’s Mayo classic and bowl. The stadium will also host several major concerts this year, including Billy Joel, Kenny Chesney, Garth Brooks, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Elton John.

In recent years, Charlotte has also hosted other major sporting events, including the ACC baseball and basketball tournaments and the 2019 NBA All-Star Game.