It’s that time of the year again. The time when Panther fans will flock to Bank of America Stadium to catch the first glimpse of the 2017 Carolina Panthers at the team’s annual Fan Fest.
The event will run this Friday from 7:30 to 9:30 PM and will feature multiple drills, including a team scrimmage followed by a light show and fireworks at the end of practice. Gates open at 6 PM and there will be performances by the Panthers drumline, Purrcussion, as well as the TopCats.
“Some of the guys have talked about their first opportunity to be in there, to be on the football field; I think you’ll get an even better sense when you see them walk out there, but even more so when they see 40 or 50,000 people show up just for Fan Fest. I mean, that really, is one of the really cool things, that we can get that kind of a crowd of people for a practice.”
-Ron Rivera, speaking about rookies looking forward to Fan Fest
55,000 Panthers fans are expected to be in attendance despite the controversy surrounding the team charging a five dollar admission fee when the event had been free in years past. After high demand last season caused computer issues at the time of distribution and problems with tickets then being sold for high prices, the Panthers decided to charge five dollars to enter the event which would then be donated to charity to try and curb the scalping issues and eliminate empty seats. There are still currently tickets available.
Although it is not technically game day, all stadium rules and policies will apply, which can be found here. Fans driving to Fan Fest will find over 30,000 parking spots within a 10-15 minute walk of the stadium, and The Roaring Riot is hosting a pre-fest tailgate at Courtyard Hooligans in uptown Charlotte. Training Camp, which is free to attend, will resume back at Wofford College in Spartanburg, SC on Sunday and will run until August 13th; the team will take on the Texans at Bank of America Stadium next Wednesday, August 9th at 7:00 PM.
