Who do you prefer and which is the most likely and better market? Raleigh has a strong soccer history, and I would love for Raleigh to get a team. That said, as I live in Greenville, SC, I'm rooting for Charlotte.
I don't have any idea which will be more successful, but putting it in Charlotte would make it more accessible to us South Carolinians (I'm from Charleston). On the other hand, a lot of South Carolinians might end up AUFC fans. Putting it in Raleigh might attract people in southern Virginia (but then you're competing with an established D.C. United fanbase). Best idea: just promote the Charleston Battery. Screw North Carolina.
Charlotte has more potential but NCFC is further ahead and more organized right now. Don't think either team from NC gets a team next round, but by 2030 I think both will have one
Raleigh seems further ahead in the game at this point. Going to Charlotte would mean sharing the same metro area as an NFL and NBA team. On the other hand, there's the possibility that MLS could get Raleigh's pro sports spotlight all to itself if the Hurricanes eventually leave town.
But MLS is a spring and summer sport, so for a large portion of the season the Charlotte MLS team would only be competing with the minor league baseball team (which leads the minor leagues in attendance)for ticket sales. Charlotte is becoming a city with very good fanbases. Panthers and Hornets both do well in attendance, and the Charlotte Knights do as well. Can't say the same about Raleigh, Hurricanes attendance is pathetic. Charlotte's bid is just real unorganized right now, if they can get their stuff together I think they'll have a great chance to have a team before 2030.
If Charlotte and Raleigh were in separate states they both would be great candidates. Being from the same state makes it seem that they are next door neighbors.
I want to say Charlotte, and I feel that the MLS would prefer the QC to Raleigh for a number of reasons (larger market, population, central to all the Carolina's, and 2nd largest banking hub in the US). But NCFC is everything that Charlotte does not have (from the rich owner who actually cares for soccer to the huge academy they just formed) and it looks like the better outfit at the moment. Like come on Smith, partner up with CLT Independence, CSA and Clt United and write your own check for the new stadium. The only real difference is how Malik is going about it vs how Smith is going about it.
So I have read that North Carolina FC's bid doesn't require public funding. How is that when their investment group is smaller than Charlotte's? Thanks