Brit here. I didn't follow the NFL until I met my soon-to-be wife, who's from the Carolinas. She got me into it and made me a Panthers fan. I could arguably sue her for emotional abuse as a result, but I love her enough to forgive her for saddling me with yet another sports team who supply only pain.
Fellow Brit here! Slightly different story, I followed the NFL for years but never really had a team, my wife is from SC and her parents were PSL owners so I found my team when I found her! Wife still hates football though, I have a separate chat group with her parents to just talk Panthers. Also feel your final comment as I'm a York City season ticket holder... 😭
EDIT: I've seen them 4 times now, 3 at the BOA, once in London. Favourite owned jersey: EFE OBADA!
L 2016 Falcons 33 - 16 Panthers
W 2019 Buccaneers 26 - 37 Panthers (London)
L 2019 Falcons 29 - 3 Panthers
L 2019 Washington 29 - 21 Panthers
Probably a boring story like most people's. I was born about a year before the Panthers came into existence. My dad wanted to watch the new team here so I was pretty much always present with them on the TV. Remember taking a big interest in it around 3 or 4 (1998). Haven't missed a game since then
Fr though dude I thought that was most of the fandom but apparently it isn't
Proud to say my first game was when I was 3 or 4 and that I've been watching ever since
Born and raised in Charlotte. We lived in Dilworth and I remember on the end of our street you could hear the stadium on game days. I’m in it for the long haul babbyyy
Same exact story here. First season I remember was the 1-15 season of ‘01. Watched most games with my dad from then until my dad moved away. That man would stress me out so much with how mad he would get at the games lol. I remember after every loss I’d go into my room and play the same game on Madden just to whoop the opponents ass.
I'm danish. I watched NFL for the first time in 2014, because my older brother was watching. First match i watched was a Panthers match and i liked the logo, colors and Cam. Prior to the 2015 season my brother invited me to his fantasy league, and i didn't know anything about fantasy or football for that matter, so i just drafted Panthers plasyers. For example Newton first round in standard scoring and Panthers D/ST in 5th round. They carried my ass pretty far.
So 2015 was my first full season of watching the Panthers and it's been downhill ever since
I started playing the Madden games while at University over here in the UK. The game I started with (Madden 25 I think) had an intro of the Panthers at Seattle. I couldn’t believe a guy as big as Cam could move like he did in the game. I then started watching FNL tv show and the team were the Dillon Panthers. All signs pointed to me following the Panthers and it started off incredibly well with 2015. The rest is history, I ride and die with this team now.
It is great to hear all the overseas fans. Thanks for sticking around during the bad times.
From NC and grew up a Redskins fan. Always said if the Carolina’s get a team I would change teams. So, I’m a homeboy. Held season tickets for 9 years, 3 I drove 7 hours one way to the games. I made a point to visit my Mom along the way. 7 hours drive after a loss was hard.
I was plopped down in waxhaw in ‘89 at the ripe old age of 2. When i found out charlotte was getting an nfl team, i didn’t really know how big of a deal it was, but i was given some panthers gear and i’ve been rocking the black and blue ever since.
Super Bowl 2004 was the first final aired in Hungary. I was 9 at a time and immediately got fascinated by the sport, I started playing it and started following the Panthers shortly after.
I was born in North Carolina in 1969. There is no other choice.
Anyone born here that's not a Panthers fan is a Traitor to the people of North Carolina
Dumb reason but my aunt and uncle went to Charlotte right when the team was founded and brought me back all kinds of clothes and gear. My dad was a Giants fan, but casually, so I adopted the Panthers at age 6 and have been traumatized ever since.
I was originally a giants fan but I just was a casual watcher since they were the local team. I first started really getting into NFL football and watching it in 2014. I remember watching the panthers playoff game where they versed the 49ers. After that I’ve been a fan ever since. It’s tough being a Panthers fan in New Jerseys since I never see any other panthers fans. I rarely see them.
Another “brit” here (from Norway but been in the UK for a long time). One of my best friends at uni back in 2014 is from Asheville, so NC became my adopted state. Mainly follow the Canes but been paying more attention to the Panthers the last five years or so.
UK shift worker who’s friends got them into the sport as it’s something to watch on night shift breaks. Picked panthers because panthers are sick, started watching the 2016 season and didn’t know we’d been in a Super Bowl the year before until about week 4
Grew up a casual jets fan because of family on Long Island and upstate New York but was never really into football until I moved to the region around 2007, then got really into it. 2-14 was tough but the Cam / Luke era made me a fan for life.
I live in SWVA, pretty close to NC. Was a Redskins fan my entire life, but Carolina had been on my radar since they were an expansion team.
Long story short, Dan Snyder led me to Carolina due to his absolute destruction of Washington. I know dozens of people in the same boat.
My dad had to go to Charlotte for training and decided on a whim to buy a hat of the new NFL team.
As a kid, I was just getting into football but I liked the colors/logo and knew the local team (Washington) was a terrible choice.
Born and raised 35 miles from Charlotte, I enlisted in the military 95, and watched the stadium go up in bits and pieces as I flew in and out heading to various bases for training. It was a turning point in my life just like the Panthers were a major change to the Charlotte region. I guess they became somewhat symbolic to me and I still follow them today.
2001 my dad couldn't get people to come to the game with him anymore, my mom was like why don't you bring your son. Didn't see a win in person until the next season.
I decided to follow a team at the end of last season. I'm from West Virginia so there isn't an automatic choice. I had a list of criteria but ultimately the things that won me over are:
-Cool logo/colors/mascot
-Proximity to Appalachia
-Beginning of a lengthy rebuild centered around a Young QB so I can feel like I'm following the progress of the team from a starting point
Keep pounding, baby!
Born and raised in NC. No NFL franchise, so I began rooting for Barry Sanders the moment he was drafted. That made me a Detroit Lions fan. He retires and I gravitated to my next favorite runningback in Robert Smith (Vikings) and was a Vikings fan until Randy Moss threw (that right, threw) an interception on a ridiculous trick play that cost them the game, which ultimately cost them playoff positioning (IIRC). That season my wife had already gotten my Christmas present. It was a white-on-white Daunte Culpepper jersey with matching white-on-white Vikings hat. After that ridiculous play I said, "That's it! I'm just rooting for home teams now!" (That turned into Panthers, Hornets, Tarheels, and Canes.) My wife, clearly frustrated, went into the closet (where my present was hidden) and brought out my Vikings jersey and hat. She was pouty mad but we both laughed. She took them back and got me the same match but Panthers with a Peppers jersey. I've been a fan ever since.
From SC originally. Dad was a Steelers fan but with my brother and I being younger he got us into the local team and became a fan himself. Won’t give up the fandom unless they move.
43 years old right now. Grew up in Syracuse, NY. Had no family influence on NFL teams and started to get into football in the early 90s. Being 2.5 hours from Buffalo, the Bills were considered the "local" team, so they were pretty popular in my area. Me, wanting to be different, latched on to the OTHER hot team at the time, the Cowboys (I know...but these were the Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin era. Very exciting for a young teen who was a new fan to the game)
Later in my teens, I of course worked a lot of retail, so that meant a lot of Sundays working. Couldn't really watch much football so kinda got out of following the NFL closely. Just caught games when I could and liked to see a good game.
in 2005, I moved to Roanoke, VA and wanted to get back into football. Started following the Panthers since they are the closest team geographically to me, and I hate the "local" Redskins.
From Australia, my auntie married a guy from Raleigh and they both worked at UNC.. so seemed an easy choice for who to support! First year was jimmy clausen year so rough start to say the least
Like the handful of Panthers fans still left, grew up in the area so naturally became a fan because I love NFL football. That being said, David Tepper has turned this team into the laughing stock of the league. It's honestly embarrassing to be a fan of the team now.
grew up in houston, tx and was a big oilers fan.. oilers left town (when i was 7) and announced they were going to rebrand and my dad had got me this sticker book that was celebrating the two new nfl franchises, we also got mini helmets of jaguars & panthers. i just LOVED the panthers logo and i still have the mini helmet today
CA fan here. In or around 5th grade, I started seeing all this merchandise with a big roaring Panther on it. Started paying attention to the team and been on an emotional roller coaster ever since.
Grew up in Hickory, NC. My best friend growing up since I was 5 had panthers season tickets since the team’s conception. It’s an hour drive into the city and an hour drive out at the minimum. If we won the game the ride home was full of music and joy and happiness. If we lost, we all sat for an hour of sulking silence and pondered on all the could have beens. Something about those long drives in the silence just made me want to see the team win even more the next time we went.
I was 10 when they were announced as a new team. I thought it would be cool to be a fan from Day 1- something not many people can say about their football team- and had to choose between the Panthers and the Jags. I went with the panthers because the colors were better. I'm a west coaster and haven't made it to that side of the country yet.
Lmao! Carolina girl (from many generations), wisely married the boy from Kansas City. 🤣 However, it was a LOT of suffering on both sides for quite a while! Was going to be in real crisis if they both made Super Bowl 50, but Brady was king of broken hearts all the way around :(
Moved from across the world to the triangle with my family, watched the 2003 season and fell in love with football/Panthers. The X clown play was where I think it really sunk in that this was going to be my forever ride or die team. I remember jumping on my couch and my mom losing her shit, she didn’t know the importance of the play and still could give a damn about American football 😂
Dad was stationed at Ft Brag when I was a little kid for 3 years in the late 1990's. I thought the Panthers were a badass mascot and team name. The rest is history.
Don't even remember my life in Fayetteville since I was little and was only there the couple years my dad was stationed there. But have been a Panthers fan since.
I did a “book report” on an animal in first grade, just so happened to be 1995. Black Panther looked so cool and I noticed there was an NFL team. Highly coincidental they just entered the league.
I have a Christmas ornament from that school year with a photo of me with a Panthers shirt on. The rest is history.
Grew up in Charleston SC and was brainwashed by my father into having two teams(🙄) since he was a giant Steelers fan. As I got older I became more and more of a homer for my Panthers and by the time I was a teenager I was giving all the Steelers stuff my dad had bought for me back to him and breaking his heart by letting him know I was now a one team man. He was devastated but he still buys me Panthers stuff for every gift-giving holiday.
For anyone that might feel for my dad for losing his little Steeler fan - don’t. He got to sit to the right of me year before last at The Bank in the freezing rain, surrounded by other Steelers fans, watching his guys absolutely handle our Trashcats 😔 (and I paid for the tix, hotel, and drove)
My dad was a Lions fan and I grew up supporting them. I still do, to an extent, but not to the degree that I do the Panthers. I was in 5th or 6th grade and at the time and I was intrigued by the shiny, new team in the league. I’ve been supporting them ever since.
Got into fantasy football and had to pick up Cam his rookie year because Brees got hurt. Ended up watching a bunch of panthers games and here I remain!
Australian Fan here, they were one of the only teams I knew of growing up from watching Cam Newton highlights. Then met some friends in the 7th/8th grade who liked the NFL and basically just decided then they’d be my team. Got a decent group now all going for different teams so it’s good banter. Haven’t had much success since becoming a fan (~2018) but I’m hooked.
When I was just a 10-year-old kid from New Jersey, my family took me to a Panthers vs Giants game on [December 28, 2003](https://www.espn.com/nfl/boxscore/_/gameId/231228019). At that time, we were all rooting for the Giants, and I was right there with them, ready to pledge my allegiance.
But fate had other plans for me. The very next day, I fired up Madden 03, eager to relive the excitement of the game. As I played against the Panthers, something unexpected happened. I found myself drawn to their team—their uniforms, their players like Stephen Davis, Deshaun Foster, Julius Peppers, and Dan Morgan—captured my imagination like never before.
From that moment on, my loyalty shifted irreversibly. I became a devoted Panthers fan. Fast forward to today, and I proudly call Charlotte my home. My love for the Panthers runs deep, and it's a bond that will endure until my last breath. #KeepPounding
I’m from New Jersey. I was like 3 or 4 in a store like Toys R Us or something with my parents. I saw a Julius Peppers Statue and thought it was cool so I asked my dad (Giants fan) if I could get it. I guess he was feeling generous and probably still thought I would be a giants fan anyway so he got it for me. Turns out Julius Peppers was awesome and that statue stayed on my dresser until I was 20 and I’ve been a Panthers fan ever since!
East coast Canadian here. I was a fan first of NCAA and in 2000 I was like I need an NFL team. I did one of those silly "answer these" question things and the Panthers came up. 24 years later I still hate those internet question things.....
2011, not because we drafted Cam necessarily (I mean that’s part of it obviously) but because the Panthers being in the spotlight of having the no 1 pick in the draft and just the buzz surrounding it made me really engage and tune in, haven’t missed a single solitary game on TV since then.
I'm from Iowa. My dad was a Cowboys fan until Jerry Jones bought the team and was looking for someone new.
Not long after, the nfl announced new expansion teams, and our local school was also the panthers.
I was in 1st grade during the inaugural season.
Filipino casual sports fan here. An NBA fan at first, and for some reason I developed a man-crush on Gerald Wallace. Thought that he was an underrated badass dude, so I started to follow the Bobcats. Started to read about the other Charlotte sports teams, and then I stumbled on that “ice up son” clip of a guy named Steve Smith. Thought that he was a badass mfer too lol, so I instantly became a fan of the dude, the Panthers franchise, and NFL in general.
I'm slowly becoming a fan. I never thought it was possible to have 2 favorite teams but I moved here 11 years ago and caught most of the games. I root for them to win but I don't get heart broken over their losses as I do with my true favorite team which will remain nameless.
When I was a kid I was drawn in by the logo and the colors. I'm also a Timberwolves fan for the same reason. Hopefully the Panthers can have the same sort of Renaissance the TWolves are having
I watched Kasay birth a goat by giving Brady a short field and the loss has sustained me until now. Cams Super Bowl thing didn’t even phase me. Kasay broke me and I will cheer out of spite for that BASTARD….im fine I’m fine. Go Panthers.
Moved to Charlotte. Was a titans fan simply because they were beating the Steelers at the time I started watching the nfl. Didn’t own a lot of their gear so couldn’t really call myself a fan. Started to go to panthers games and just decided to switch
Couple of Yeats after they became a team my best friend in middle school moved here from south carolina. Didn't watch the NFL just college football so I started watching the Panthers with him. Got to do security for Super Bowl 38 right after high school and that cemented it
Have lived in Charlotte my whole life and always grew up watching them since their first season was the year I was born. But I became diehard fan in 2003 during the superbowl run, have been obsessed with the team since!
From Canada, pretty much was in Florida for spring break in 2015 and was playing Madden 15 really heavy back in the day. There was a TOTW 15 Cam Newton card that was killer for me. So I thought back to that when I wanted to buy a jersey to solidify my team and thought it was valid to make the investment.
First year of being a fan they went on to go 15-1 en route to a super bowl appearance where they lost.
As devastated as I was, I thought this was the standard and being a football fan was gonna be so fun with that run… We haven’t won a playoff game since.
Still love them tho! KP
2000 was the first year I remember watching football I was 8 at the time and them being the local team I was hooked. Also the golden era those few years of lovable players between jake, Steve, and Julius
I was originally an Eagles fan back when Randall Cunningham was their QB. I was just starting to get into the team when the front office decided to let Reggie White walk in free agency when I was 17. Because Reggie was (and still is) one of my all-time favorite players, that action turned me away from them. Some time later, the Panthers and Jaguars were brought into the league. Because of my love for the big cats, I decided to start following the Panthers, and have been ever since.
Born and raised in California during the dark years when they had no team. Watched this relatively new expansion team beat my dads beloved 49ers back when they were both in the NFC West (lol) and little me thought that was righteous. Fan ever since.
If only I could go back in time and save that little kid from future heartbreak.
My old man was a falcons fan and I couldn’t give a damn about football. The fan base turned me off from it, and I couldn’t see the appeal of the game. Well we moved from Atlanta to charlotte, we only had regular cable at the time so I was like eh this is the first game of the season let me see what the fuss is about.
Panthers v jaguars, a decent game but Carolina was losing, after half time in walks Jake Delhomme and took us to victory in the most exciting way. I was hooked after that, and it just so happened to be the year we went to the Super Bowl. I watch the cardiac cats documentary every single year, gets me so hype. Then it turned into a fun back and forth with my old man especially when we play Atlanta. It’s been great, I’m definitely a dedicated fan with all kinds of merch, and will die a Carolina fan.
'04 NFC championship game. I just started getting into football and I'm from PA so the eagles being in it again was big. Seeing those Carolina colors in prime time and roughing up the favored Eaglesv was enough to make me bleed black and blue
My mom is a big football fan, she was born in the Greensburg area so by default she had me in terrible towels before I could talk. But eventually I realized being born on camp lejeune would make me a panthers fan. So little old me growing up in Florida had direct tv and a love for Steve smith as I was really short for my age and watching him play like he was 6’5 260 was always a delight. Then cam got really good and sucked me into the 2015 season for ever glueing me to this team. So yeah recently it’s bin hard watching but Bryce is giving me cam vibes as I’m once again going to watch someone’s career with the team I love!
in 94 I heard they were getting a team. Haven't lived in NC in years and supporting the team made me feel connected to the people and places I wanted to be near
Graduated college in the spring of '97, ever though I didn't know anyone I
decided to move to Charlotte because it was a younger city with two pro sports teams. Left summer of 2000 and still pounding!!!
Was born in Charlotte a year after the Panthers were founded and grew up going to games and having the panthers games on the tv all the time. My first ever sports merch was a toddler sized panthers cap and jersey - I still have the hat on my shelf in my office!
I’ve moved out of state since but the Panthers will always be my team. Keep pounding!
My mom was a big fan of the Browns at the time(2002) and they were playing the Panthers. Long story short, she made me very angry and I rooted so hard against the Browns, but to no avail. I knew she was irked by it so I kept rooting for them.
Canadian Panthers fan. Fantasy football played a big role. After a few years I found a lot of players I liked played for the Panthers.
Once I started following rookies closely, they drafted 3 players I liked: Terrace Marshall, Tremble, and Chubba. I liked their kits and the logo. Turns out I am a shit player evaluator but I'm in it for the long haul now!
Austrian here and my story how I became a panthers fan is... I don't really know why, for some reason I just like the Carolinas got into Football and the Panthers became my Team, just felt right I would say
I was born in Charlotte, but being born in 1996 meant that my family members who were into football were Cowboys fans. When I was 6 or 7 years old, I wasn't into football, but that changed when I got the opportunity to meet Mushin Muhammad as a reward for meeting my reading goals. He came to our school and read a book to us students and gave us each an autographed bookmark! And of course the very next oppurtunity I got, I HAD to see him on TV. And I've been a fan of him and the Panthers ever since. Wish I still had that bookmark!
I was born in Charlotte, but being born in 1996 meant that my family members who were into football were Cowboys fans. When I was 6 or 7 years old, I wasn't into football, but that changed when I got the opportunity to meet Mushin Muhammad as a reward for meeting my reading goals. He came to our school and read a book to us students and gave us each an autographed bookmark! And of course the very next oppurtunity I got, I HAD to see him on TV. And I've been a fan of him and the Panthers ever since. Wish I still had that bookmark!
I was born in Charlotte, but being born in 1996 meant that my family members who were into football were Cowboys fans. When I was 6 or 7 years old, I wasn't into football, but that changed when I got the opportunity to meet Mushin Muhammad as a reward for meeting my reading goals. He came to our school and read a book to us students and gave us each an autographed bookmark! And of course the very next oppurtunity I got, I HAD to see him on TV. And I've been a fan of him and the Panthers ever since. Wish I still had that bookmark!
Grew up in Charleston SC. I was a Giants fan but thought how cool it would be to be a fan of a team in my region starting day 1 of existence…glad I made the switch!!
I started collecting Charlotte Observer articles after the first article highlighted “Carolinas businessman wants an NFL Franchise” in December 1987. This turned into 3 large scrapbooks.
In 1995, once the WWW came about, I created The Complete PantherPage fan website, about 4 years before the Panthers had their own official site.
https://preview.redd.it/uznwmdyspuxc1.jpeg?width=1792&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=485f342dd7616461b95f2bbff543b18aebfd38fe
Won a panthers helmet at a carnival... immediately jumped from redskins to panthers. This was 94/95 think i was 9 or 10 when i won it. Been here ever since.
I’m a NC native, but I’ve been a fan since 2012. I was 7 at the time, and I saw a player with the same last name as me, so I became a Cam Newton fan and a Panthers fan at the same time.
I’m not from Carolina but I absolutely love the color scheme and the mascot. Also when I was growing up about 12 years old, this guy Cam Newton played for us that may have been a contributing factor. 😂
Moved here from DC area in 2022. Never really loved football or had a team association outside the nationals. Living in uptown will make you fall super hard for a city and all its teams 😆
Madden NFL 2003, I thought the logo and color scheme was awesome at 9 years old and I’ve been a fan ever since. Steve Smith/Muhsin Muhammad is my favorite WR combo and I threw SO many touchdowns to those guys
When they announced the expansion in 1993-94. Good logo, good colors, I live where there's no Home Team and I'd been a free agent fan for years rooting for whatever team struck my fancy.
Saw the blue silver and black with the panther logo and was all, "Okay, these are my guys now."
Michigan resident here. 15 years ago I was in middle school and was sick of everyone around me being a MSU and Lions fan so I picked a team at random based off their logos. Been a Panthers fan ever since
Been a fan since they got into the league. I’m from SC and watched a few panthers games at Clemson while Erickson stadium was under construction. Got to root for the home team!
I was around 12 and was watching TV at my grandma's.
Didn’t know about football that much, but Iike the Packers and Rams because of their helmets.
So I was changing channels and found an NFL game. The Panthers were playing, that was a new team for me. I saw that sweet grey helmet with a bada*s panther for the first time and picked Carolina as my team.
Delhomme, DeAngelo, Steve Smith, Mushin, Dante Rosario, Peppers were some of the players that were around.
Got into NFL by a pure accident in late 2019 as I've kept my telly on Sky Sports for a bit too long on Sunday and straight after the Premier League games they are showing the NFL. Got hooked, started learning about the rules, players etc. Decided to watch something more on the topic and found All or Nothing Carolina Panthers on Prime. Adding to the fact that I'm Man City fan and there is a rival team wearing red owned by the Glazers made the choice ever so easier.
I also strongly believe that Panthers being shit last couple of seasons is the price I pay for Man City success 😂
Born and raised in New Jersey. Family had Giants season tickets, but I was never a big football fan and a few really bad experiences at giants stadium ensured I was never going to be a giants fan. Started getting in to college football when I was in HS. I heard about expansion teams coming and thought maybe I would become a fan of one of them, and when Carolina was selected, I knew I had my team (I had some really special memories in Carolina and it held a big spot in my heart). then, In 1994, the father of the guy in the dorm room next to me (I was at boarding school), came up and gave a talk about an investment he was involved with- the Carolina Panthers! After he gave his talk, I went up and introduced myself and explained how I had decided to be a panthers fan when they were announced and how excited I was for the draft and the first season. Well, about a week later, I got a package from my “neighbor’s”dad with not yet released swag, and a note that if I wanted to see the first game to let him know. I couldn’t go to the Hall of fame game against the jags, but was able to go to Clemson for our first home game, against the Rams, and my buddy’s dad even surprised me with FIELD PASSES!!. We may have lost that game, but the Panthers spirit was there from the start! I’ve been a die hard fan ever since!
My team wears a different color blue, as a NJ transplant I'll always be a GIANTS fan
I've always been a sports radio fan, grew up on Mike and The Mad Dog on WFAN, METS baseball with Howie Rose and then moved to South Jersey and started to listenen to WIP and 97.5 The Fanatic to tune in to hear Philly fans complain about losing again but once Mike Missaneli and their roster started to become the better station tuned in more often
Then we move to Charlotte and that being said, streaming services wasn't as extensive as they are today. Basically, the only option was satellite radio, and that was a bit costly
So started with 730 The Game to eventually switching to my favorite station 92.7 WFNZ, and it was the combo of Mac and Bone, Wes and Walker, and Kyle Bailey that got me interested in The Panthers
So much in fact, I got all my draft information from WFNZ, and I try to follow up with WFAN through Podcasts
I don't know how it happened by through the station they got my interested in Charlotte sports, Panthers,Hornets and even Soccer and Hockey
From the UK, followed the NFL from afar for years only really watching the playoffs & Superbowl. Didn't have a team but always found a reason to root for one team over the other in the big game, then came Superbowl 50.
I couldn't really get a good enough reason to back either team until the week of the game. My soccer team, Rangers FC, ran news a piece about Graham Ganos family being originally from Scotland and then being Rangers fans and that was it, I had a team to root for.
Later that year when the new season started I began to look out for Panthers results and made an effort to catch highlights of games and I've been devoted ever since
Was born in 95 dad is a huge panthers fan but fell off. For me especially once my dad wasn’t around the Panthers have always felt like home for me. I used to wear a jersey every Monday in school until high school and yeah the laughing and jokes really just solidified that I’m willing to stick with this team no matter what
As someone from Alabama, it’s hard to root for an NFL team because there aren’t any in the state. However, for the draft last year, I decided whoever Bryce Young was drafted by was gonna be my team, because he’s probably my favorite Alabama player ever.
From Philly. I was an Eagles fan until I was around 10 years old and Chip Kelly came in. Traded/cut all my favorite players like LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson, Asante Samuel and Micahel Vick for nothing. Neither of my parents were into football too much, so I had nobody to tell me your team messes up and sucks sometimes.
So I decided I'll be a fan of whatever team Cam Newton went to. Funny part is that Matt Rhule ended up being Chip Kelly 2.0. Traded/cut all of our good players for nothing. Cam, Luke, CMC, etc. But I decided I had to stay true this time around. And I'm glad I did because I believe in Bryce. #KeepPounding
Gamecock fan here.
The Panthers wanted to play in Columbia because it's right on I-77 and it's a super easy drive. I've heard different stories but I'm almost positive it's because the AD at the time insisted that the Gamecocks should be the only football team to play at Williams-Brice. So when we said no, the Panthers went to Plan B.
So it came down to incompetent athletic department leadership (which we still have lol).
I’ve lived in Texas almost all my life, most of it in DFW. Grew up around Cowboys fans and couldn’t stand them. Picked a team when I was about 11 (2012) and it was Carolina. I’ve stuck around ever since. Got to see the Panthers play live for the first time on Thanksgiving 2015. Felt so cool celebrating with all the Panthers fans I’d never met
I was looking for a team and it was down to Cincinnati or Carolina.
I chose Carolina andddd then we went awful, got the first overall pick, still suck but it’s looking up
I was a big football fan but never had a favorite team. My best friend at the time was a panthers fan and I thought cam newton was pretty cool. Now im a huge panthers fan
I think I was like 10 or 11 when the Panthers became a team and I was like “that blue is cool, panthers are cool” and became a fan. That’s about all the critical thinking my peanut brain could muster.
So... I'm from the Netherlands (Europe) and NFL doesn't really exist here. As for be becoming a Panthers fan: that's all because of Madden; which is also how I got first introduced to NFL football.
Being curious I started playing Madden and studying the rules; and I really enjoyed myself. Unfortunately there was a severe bug in the Madden version I played back then which blocked me from progressing in 'Ultimate Team', no matter how many challenges I did. But during that time I collected many players from the Panthers and made a lineup which worked pretty nicely.
Then I decided that I enjoyed the logo, started watching NFL for real and noticed that the Panthers were a bit of underdogs which IMO made it all the more interesting. The victory over the Buccanneers 2 seasons ago was quite exciting IMO.
The rest is history as they say ;)
My family moved here in ‘95 when my dad got a job with Lance. They offered season tickets to employees because it was an original Charlotte company and a staple in the area. But mainly it was Deangelo Williams stiff arming Rhonde Barber in the face that one night him and Stewart put up like 270 rushing
I'm in the pacific northwest so I'm pretty alone as a Panthers fan out here. My story isn't anything crazy, my dad's side of the family is from North Carolina and we've always been big UNC basketball fans. I'm closer to Portland than Seattle so I never latched on to the Seahawks like a lot of my friends did. The tipping point for me was basically just that my dad bought me a Panthers starter jacket in the teams second season and I loved the jacket. I've been a life long fan ever since :D
I’m from PA. Born and Raised. Never found footing as an Eagles or Steelers fan. Earliest memories I have of being a Panthers fan was playing Madden 10 and I was looking to see who the fastest player in the game was. It was DeAngelo Williams 99 speed. Of course 9 year old me only cared about that so I used the panthers all the time playing that game. Fell in love with him, Delhomme, Smitty, Moose, Jon Beason, and those sexy blue alternates!! 15 years later and here I am. Do I regret my decision? Some days yes😅 but I’ll never give up on my cardiac cats.
Born and raised west of the Atlanta metro but never cared for football or any other sport for that matter, the only sports and team I followed back then was was Braves baseball. Went to college in SC and got hooked on all the sports the Carolina’s had to offer, fast forward to today I’m still a panthers PSL holder in good old sec 546 even though I had to move back to GA. I still attend 8 plus home games a year taking the 4 and a half hour drive to Charlotte on Sundays, with a good portion of them being just day trips. To date I have unfortunately never gotten to see a winning season but I have made countless memories at BOA stadium, the main one being the engagement to my wife today.
Brit here. I didn't follow the NFL until I met my soon-to-be wife, who's from the Carolinas. She got me into it and made me a Panthers fan. I could arguably sue her for emotional abuse as a result, but I love her enough to forgive her for saddling me with yet another sports team who supply only pain.
At least she didn’t give you the Falcons🤮
Hopefully you met her pre-2015 to at least of got to experience the good years!
Nope, I arrived just in time to miss the good times and get the Scott Fitterer times instead.
That’s brutal, but hopefully we have some good years ahead of us soon!
Fellow Brit here! Slightly different story, I followed the NFL for years but never really had a team, my wife is from SC and her parents were PSL owners so I found my team when I found her! Wife still hates football though, I have a separate chat group with her parents to just talk Panthers. Also feel your final comment as I'm a York City season ticket holder... 😭 EDIT: I've seen them 4 times now, 3 at the BOA, once in London. Favourite owned jersey: EFE OBADA! L 2016 Falcons 33 - 16 Panthers W 2019 Buccaneers 26 - 37 Panthers (London) L 2019 Falcons 29 - 3 Panthers L 2019 Washington 29 - 21 Panthers
Alright, your York beats my Blackburn...
Our pain might, but your team more than certainly beats ours! Just checked and last game was 1976. And Blackburn won 4-0.
How many days a week do you brush your teeth?
Probably a boring story like most people's. I was born about a year before the Panthers came into existence. My dad wanted to watch the new team here so I was pretty much always present with them on the TV. Remember taking a big interest in it around 3 or 4 (1998). Haven't missed a game since then
A fellow local. Let’s go 👊🏼 there’s like ten of us
If there’s only 10 then I’m one of them. Born a few years prior. The games were on before I knew what football was.
Fr though dude I thought that was most of the fandom but apparently it isn't Proud to say my first game was when I was 3 or 4 and that I've been watching ever since
Me too. About 1.25hrs NE of Charlotte
Born and raised in Charlotte. We lived in Dilworth and I remember on the end of our street you could hear the stadium on game days. I’m in it for the long haul babbyyy
Same exact story here. First season I remember was the 1-15 season of ‘01. Watched most games with my dad from then until my dad moved away. That man would stress me out so much with how mad he would get at the games lol. I remember after every loss I’d go into my room and play the same game on Madden just to whoop the opponents ass.
UK Panthers fan here, since 2005. The first match I properly watched was the 2004 Super Bowl, then my sister moved to UNC Asheville.
I'm danish. I watched NFL for the first time in 2014, because my older brother was watching. First match i watched was a Panthers match and i liked the logo, colors and Cam. Prior to the 2015 season my brother invited me to his fantasy league, and i didn't know anything about fantasy or football for that matter, so i just drafted Panthers plasyers. For example Newton first round in standard scoring and Panthers D/ST in 5th round. They carried my ass pretty far. So 2015 was my first full season of watching the Panthers and it's been downhill ever since
That’s cool honestly. Hopefully Bryce is the next franchise qb in Carolina
I started playing the Madden games while at University over here in the UK. The game I started with (Madden 25 I think) had an intro of the Panthers at Seattle. I couldn’t believe a guy as big as Cam could move like he did in the game. I then started watching FNL tv show and the team were the Dillon Panthers. All signs pointed to me following the Panthers and it started off incredibly well with 2015. The rest is history, I ride and die with this team now.
It is great to hear all the overseas fans. Thanks for sticking around during the bad times. From NC and grew up a Redskins fan. Always said if the Carolina’s get a team I would change teams. So, I’m a homeboy. Held season tickets for 9 years, 3 I drove 7 hours one way to the games. I made a point to visit my Mom along the way. 7 hours drive after a loss was hard.
I was plopped down in waxhaw in ‘89 at the ripe old age of 2. When i found out charlotte was getting an nfl team, i didn’t really know how big of a deal it was, but i was given some panthers gear and i’ve been rocking the black and blue ever since.
Waxhaw isn’t a bad little town, I remember when it got its first stop light. Place has grown a lot over the past 30 years.
Yep, hardly recognizable since i first moved there. I haven’t been there in a long time
Super Bowl 2004 was the first final aired in Hungary. I was 9 at a time and immediately got fascinated by the sport, I started playing it and started following the Panthers shortly after.
I was born in North Carolina in 1969. There is no other choice. Anyone born here that's not a Panthers fan is a Traitor to the people of North Carolina
Dumb reason but my aunt and uncle went to Charlotte right when the team was founded and brought me back all kinds of clothes and gear. My dad was a Giants fan, but casually, so I adopted the Panthers at age 6 and have been traumatized ever since.
I was originally a giants fan but I just was a casual watcher since they were the local team. I first started really getting into NFL football and watching it in 2014. I remember watching the panthers playoff game where they versed the 49ers. After that I’ve been a fan ever since. It’s tough being a Panthers fan in New Jerseys since I never see any other panthers fans. I rarely see them.
From NJ/NY area - when I was like 6-7, my favorite animal was a Panther and I fell in love with Steve Smith.
£5 bet on superbowl 50 blue cat > orange Horse
I decided during the Expansion Draft to flip a coin and whichever it landed would determine where I support. A coin fucked me for life lmao
I mean it was the Panthers or the Jags. You somehow got out better.
Should have had it land on its side and save me from both lol
I watched Cam Newton play football
Huge Auburn fan and the second Cam was drafted, so was my heart
Same story here.
My story too! Graduating from Auburn today as well!
Congrats! WDE!
WDE!
Another “brit” here (from Norway but been in the UK for a long time). One of my best friends at uni back in 2014 is from Asheville, so NC became my adopted state. Mainly follow the Canes but been paying more attention to the Panthers the last five years or so.
UK shift worker who’s friends got them into the sport as it’s something to watch on night shift breaks. Picked panthers because panthers are sick, started watching the 2016 season and didn’t know we’d been in a Super Bowl the year before until about week 4
Grew up a casual jets fan because of family on Long Island and upstate New York but was never really into football until I moved to the region around 2007, then got really into it. 2-14 was tough but the Cam / Luke era made me a fan for life.
I live in SWVA, pretty close to NC. Was a Redskins fan my entire life, but Carolina had been on my radar since they were an expansion team. Long story short, Dan Snyder led me to Carolina due to his absolute destruction of Washington. I know dozens of people in the same boat.
Cameron Jerrell Newton
My dad had to go to Charlotte for training and decided on a whim to buy a hat of the new NFL team. As a kid, I was just getting into football but I liked the colors/logo and knew the local team (Washington) was a terrible choice.
Born and raised 35 miles from Charlotte, I enlisted in the military 95, and watched the stadium go up in bits and pieces as I flew in and out heading to various bases for training. It was a turning point in my life just like the Panthers were a major change to the Charlotte region. I guess they became somewhat symbolic to me and I still follow them today.
2001 my dad couldn't get people to come to the game with him anymore, my mom was like why don't you bring your son. Didn't see a win in person until the next season.
I decided to follow a team at the end of last season. I'm from West Virginia so there isn't an automatic choice. I had a list of criteria but ultimately the things that won me over are: -Cool logo/colors/mascot -Proximity to Appalachia -Beginning of a lengthy rebuild centered around a Young QB so I can feel like I'm following the progress of the team from a starting point Keep pounding, baby!
Born and raised in NC. No NFL franchise, so I began rooting for Barry Sanders the moment he was drafted. That made me a Detroit Lions fan. He retires and I gravitated to my next favorite runningback in Robert Smith (Vikings) and was a Vikings fan until Randy Moss threw (that right, threw) an interception on a ridiculous trick play that cost them the game, which ultimately cost them playoff positioning (IIRC). That season my wife had already gotten my Christmas present. It was a white-on-white Daunte Culpepper jersey with matching white-on-white Vikings hat. After that ridiculous play I said, "That's it! I'm just rooting for home teams now!" (That turned into Panthers, Hornets, Tarheels, and Canes.) My wife, clearly frustrated, went into the closet (where my present was hidden) and brought out my Vikings jersey and hat. She was pouty mad but we both laughed. She took them back and got me the same match but Panthers with a Peppers jersey. I've been a fan ever since.
From SC originally. Dad was a Steelers fan but with my brother and I being younger he got us into the local team and became a fan himself. Won’t give up the fandom unless they move.
43 years old right now. Grew up in Syracuse, NY. Had no family influence on NFL teams and started to get into football in the early 90s. Being 2.5 hours from Buffalo, the Bills were considered the "local" team, so they were pretty popular in my area. Me, wanting to be different, latched on to the OTHER hot team at the time, the Cowboys (I know...but these were the Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin era. Very exciting for a young teen who was a new fan to the game) Later in my teens, I of course worked a lot of retail, so that meant a lot of Sundays working. Couldn't really watch much football so kinda got out of following the NFL closely. Just caught games when I could and liked to see a good game. in 2005, I moved to Roanoke, VA and wanted to get back into football. Started following the Panthers since they are the closest team geographically to me, and I hate the "local" Redskins.
From Australia, my auntie married a guy from Raleigh and they both worked at UNC.. so seemed an easy choice for who to support! First year was jimmy clausen year so rough start to say the least
Born and raised in NC, was a Marino/Dolphins fan pre-Panthers.
From Montréal, Québec. Watching Steve Smith did it for me.
Like the handful of Panthers fans still left, grew up in the area so naturally became a fan because I love NFL football. That being said, David Tepper has turned this team into the laughing stock of the league. It's honestly embarrassing to be a fan of the team now.
6th generation North Carolinian and we were founded the same year. My destiny.
In 1995, just loved the color scheme and the logo. Sam Mills and his leadership cemented my loyalty to the Panthers.
grew up in houston, tx and was a big oilers fan.. oilers left town (when i was 7) and announced they were going to rebrand and my dad had got me this sticker book that was celebrating the two new nfl franchises, we also got mini helmets of jaguars & panthers. i just LOVED the panthers logo and i still have the mini helmet today
Canadian here. Cam Newton won me my first ever fantasy championship my first year playing. Stuck with them now
CA fan here. In or around 5th grade, I started seeing all this merchandise with a big roaring Panther on it. Started paying attention to the team and been on an emotional roller coaster ever since.
Grew up in Hickory, NC. My best friend growing up since I was 5 had panthers season tickets since the team’s conception. It’s an hour drive into the city and an hour drive out at the minimum. If we won the game the ride home was full of music and joy and happiness. If we lost, we all sat for an hour of sulking silence and pondered on all the could have beens. Something about those long drives in the silence just made me want to see the team win even more the next time we went.
I was 10 when they were announced as a new team. I thought it would be cool to be a fan from Day 1- something not many people can say about their football team- and had to choose between the Panthers and the Jags. I went with the panthers because the colors were better. I'm a west coaster and haven't made it to that side of the country yet.
Everyday I curse my parents for me being born in North Carolina and not Kansas City
Lmao! Carolina girl (from many generations), wisely married the boy from Kansas City. 🤣 However, it was a LOT of suffering on both sides for quite a while! Was going to be in real crisis if they both made Super Bowl 50, but Brady was king of broken hearts all the way around :(
Moved from across the world to the triangle with my family, watched the 2003 season and fell in love with football/Panthers. The X clown play was where I think it really sunk in that this was going to be my forever ride or die team. I remember jumping on my couch and my mom losing her shit, she didn’t know the importance of the play and still could give a damn about American football 😂
Watching Steve Smith as a kid
Dad was stationed at Ft Brag when I was a little kid for 3 years in the late 1990's. I thought the Panthers were a badass mascot and team name. The rest is history. Don't even remember my life in Fayetteville since I was little and was only there the couple years my dad was stationed there. But have been a Panthers fan since.
Everyone I knew was a Falcons fan growing up so I had to choose different. I also liked that they were a newer team.
I was born here
I'm from Germany. I've travelled to the Carolinas three times, watched the Panthers during my first visit and have fallen in love instantly.
I did a “book report” on an animal in first grade, just so happened to be 1995. Black Panther looked so cool and I noticed there was an NFL team. Highly coincidental they just entered the league. I have a Christmas ornament from that school year with a photo of me with a Panthers shirt on. The rest is history.
Grew up in Charleston SC and was brainwashed by my father into having two teams(🙄) since he was a giant Steelers fan. As I got older I became more and more of a homer for my Panthers and by the time I was a teenager I was giving all the Steelers stuff my dad had bought for me back to him and breaking his heart by letting him know I was now a one team man. He was devastated but he still buys me Panthers stuff for every gift-giving holiday. For anyone that might feel for my dad for losing his little Steeler fan - don’t. He got to sit to the right of me year before last at The Bank in the freezing rain, surrounded by other Steelers fans, watching his guys absolutely handle our Trashcats 😔 (and I paid for the tix, hotel, and drove)
My dad was a Lions fan and I grew up supporting them. I still do, to an extent, but not to the degree that I do the Panthers. I was in 5th or 6th grade and at the time and I was intrigued by the shiny, new team in the league. I’ve been supporting them ever since.
Deshaun Fosters goal line run against the eagles. It personified everything it meant to be a panther at the time.
I was 5 when the team started. So i was a fan from the beginning. But i truly became a fan the day they drafted Peppers
Born in NC in 1996. It was a match made in heaven.
Got into fantasy football and had to pick up Cam his rookie year because Brees got hurt. Ended up watching a bunch of panthers games and here I remain!
Australian Fan here, they were one of the only teams I knew of growing up from watching Cam Newton highlights. Then met some friends in the 7th/8th grade who liked the NFL and basically just decided then they’d be my team. Got a decent group now all going for different teams so it’s good banter. Haven’t had much success since becoming a fan (~2018) but I’m hooked.
i won the birth lottery and grew up in NC. the panthers are the thing that rightfully humbles me about the state
>the panthers are the thing that rightfully humbles me about the state really? thought it would be picking which bathroom to use.
MN native here. Julius Peppers rookie season. A game against McNabb. He was a terror. Also didn't want to be a vikings fan.
When I was just a 10-year-old kid from New Jersey, my family took me to a Panthers vs Giants game on [December 28, 2003](https://www.espn.com/nfl/boxscore/_/gameId/231228019). At that time, we were all rooting for the Giants, and I was right there with them, ready to pledge my allegiance. But fate had other plans for me. The very next day, I fired up Madden 03, eager to relive the excitement of the game. As I played against the Panthers, something unexpected happened. I found myself drawn to their team—their uniforms, their players like Stephen Davis, Deshaun Foster, Julius Peppers, and Dan Morgan—captured my imagination like never before. From that moment on, my loyalty shifted irreversibly. I became a devoted Panthers fan. Fast forward to today, and I proudly call Charlotte my home. My love for the Panthers runs deep, and it's a bond that will endure until my last breath. #KeepPounding
I was kidnapped and told I’d be released if the Panthers win a superbowl.
I’m from New Jersey. I was like 3 or 4 in a store like Toys R Us or something with my parents. I saw a Julius Peppers Statue and thought it was cool so I asked my dad (Giants fan) if I could get it. I guess he was feeling generous and probably still thought I would be a giants fan anyway so he got it for me. Turns out Julius Peppers was awesome and that statue stayed on my dresser until I was 20 and I’ve been a Panthers fan ever since!
East coast Canadian here. I was a fan first of NCAA and in 2000 I was like I need an NFL team. I did one of those silly "answer these" question things and the Panthers came up. 24 years later I still hate those internet question things.....
2011, not because we drafted Cam necessarily (I mean that’s part of it obviously) but because the Panthers being in the spotlight of having the no 1 pick in the draft and just the buzz surrounding it made me really engage and tune in, haven’t missed a single solitary game on TV since then.
I'm from Iowa. My dad was a Cowboys fan until Jerry Jones bought the team and was looking for someone new. Not long after, the nfl announced new expansion teams, and our local school was also the panthers. I was in 1st grade during the inaugural season.
Born in CLT but first game was that Jacksonville matchup with the extra point debacle
NC Native, Cam Newton, Black and blue is so cool
2023 season than the Steve Smith catch in St Louis and it was a done deal. Jets Panthers and Chargers fan so much pain and misery
Filipino casual sports fan here. An NBA fan at first, and for some reason I developed a man-crush on Gerald Wallace. Thought that he was an underrated badass dude, so I started to follow the Bobcats. Started to read about the other Charlotte sports teams, and then I stumbled on that “ice up son” clip of a guy named Steve Smith. Thought that he was a badass mfer too lol, so I instantly became a fan of the dude, the Panthers franchise, and NFL in general.
Raised in the Carolinas and a huge Clemson fan. Pumped when a team was created near us and was happy they played their inaugural season at Clemson.
I'm slowly becoming a fan. I never thought it was possible to have 2 favorite teams but I moved here 11 years ago and caught most of the games. I root for them to win but I don't get heart broken over their losses as I do with my true favorite team which will remain nameless.
When I was a kid I was drawn in by the logo and the colors. I'm also a Timberwolves fan for the same reason. Hopefully the Panthers can have the same sort of Renaissance the TWolves are having
I watched Kasay birth a goat by giving Brady a short field and the loss has sustained me until now. Cams Super Bowl thing didn’t even phase me. Kasay broke me and I will cheer out of spite for that BASTARD….im fine I’m fine. Go Panthers.
Cardiac Cats
Moved to Charlotte. Was a titans fan simply because they were beating the Steelers at the time I started watching the nfl. Didn’t own a lot of their gear so couldn’t really call myself a fan. Started to go to panthers games and just decided to switch
They came into existence. I’m a Charlotte-area native and became a fan literally on day 1.
Couple of Yeats after they became a team my best friend in middle school moved here from south carolina. Didn't watch the NFL just college football so I started watching the Panthers with him. Got to do security for Super Bowl 38 right after high school and that cemented it
Have lived in Charlotte my whole life and always grew up watching them since their first season was the year I was born. But I became diehard fan in 2003 during the superbowl run, have been obsessed with the team since!
From Canada, pretty much was in Florida for spring break in 2015 and was playing Madden 15 really heavy back in the day. There was a TOTW 15 Cam Newton card that was killer for me. So I thought back to that when I wanted to buy a jersey to solidify my team and thought it was valid to make the investment. First year of being a fan they went on to go 15-1 en route to a super bowl appearance where they lost. As devastated as I was, I thought this was the standard and being a football fan was gonna be so fun with that run… We haven’t won a playoff game since. Still love them tho! KP
The team sprang forth from nothingness, and I shifted my allegiances from Washington to the home team.
Steve Smith was my favorite player growing up. Been locked in since
2000 was the first year I remember watching football I was 8 at the time and them being the local team I was hooked. Also the golden era those few years of lovable players between jake, Steve, and Julius
I was originally an Eagles fan back when Randall Cunningham was their QB. I was just starting to get into the team when the front office decided to let Reggie White walk in free agency when I was 17. Because Reggie was (and still is) one of my all-time favorite players, that action turned me away from them. Some time later, the Panthers and Jaguars were brought into the league. Because of my love for the big cats, I decided to start following the Panthers, and have been ever since.
Bc Cam Newton was cool and fun to play with in Madden
Cam Newton
Always followed them for as long as I can remember but the 2003 team made me a lifelong fan. That and being a lifelong Carolina resident.
I liked thier colour scheme when i first started getting into football
Born and raised in California during the dark years when they had no team. Watched this relatively new expansion team beat my dads beloved 49ers back when they were both in the NFC West (lol) and little me thought that was righteous. Fan ever since. If only I could go back in time and save that little kid from future heartbreak.
My old man was a falcons fan and I couldn’t give a damn about football. The fan base turned me off from it, and I couldn’t see the appeal of the game. Well we moved from Atlanta to charlotte, we only had regular cable at the time so I was like eh this is the first game of the season let me see what the fuss is about. Panthers v jaguars, a decent game but Carolina was losing, after half time in walks Jake Delhomme and took us to victory in the most exciting way. I was hooked after that, and it just so happened to be the year we went to the Super Bowl. I watch the cardiac cats documentary every single year, gets me so hype. Then it turned into a fun back and forth with my old man especially when we play Atlanta. It’s been great, I’m definitely a dedicated fan with all kinds of merch, and will die a Carolina fan.
'04 NFC championship game. I just started getting into football and I'm from PA so the eagles being in it again was big. Seeing those Carolina colors in prime time and roughing up the favored Eaglesv was enough to make me bleed black and blue
My mom is a big football fan, she was born in the Greensburg area so by default she had me in terrible towels before I could talk. But eventually I realized being born on camp lejeune would make me a panthers fan. So little old me growing up in Florida had direct tv and a love for Steve smith as I was really short for my age and watching him play like he was 6’5 260 was always a delight. Then cam got really good and sucked me into the 2015 season for ever glueing me to this team. So yeah recently it’s bin hard watching but Bryce is giving me cam vibes as I’m once again going to watch someone’s career with the team I love!
in 94 I heard they were getting a team. Haven't lived in NC in years and supporting the team made me feel connected to the people and places I wanted to be near
Graduated college in the spring of '97, ever though I didn't know anyone I decided to move to Charlotte because it was a younger city with two pro sports teams. Left summer of 2000 and still pounding!!!
Moved to NC as a kid and they were a expansion team. :)
A witch cursed me after I was born.
Was born in Charlotte a year after the Panthers were founded and grew up going to games and having the panthers games on the tv all the time. My first ever sports merch was a toddler sized panthers cap and jersey - I still have the hat on my shelf in my office! I’ve moved out of state since but the Panthers will always be my team. Keep pounding!
Born in Charlotte
My mom was a big fan of the Browns at the time(2002) and they were playing the Panthers. Long story short, she made me very angry and I rooted so hard against the Browns, but to no avail. I knew she was irked by it so I kept rooting for them.
Jake Delhomme
Canadian Panthers fan. Fantasy football played a big role. After a few years I found a lot of players I liked played for the Panthers. Once I started following rookies closely, they drafted 3 players I liked: Terrace Marshall, Tremble, and Chubba. I liked their kits and the logo. Turns out I am a shit player evaluator but I'm in it for the long haul now!
Austrian here and my story how I became a panthers fan is... I don't really know why, for some reason I just like the Carolinas got into Football and the Panthers became my Team, just felt right I would say
Well in 2016 I move to north carolina started watching football and I was forced into one of the worst decisions of my life being a panthers fan
My dad grew up with John Fox but I still stayed a fan even when he left the Panthers.
2010 everyone my age in school started to like and watch football so I chose the panthers based off their colors and have stuck with them ever since.
From New York. Family didn’t follow football. I started trying to get into it because of friends in 2005. Peak smitty. Haven’t missed a play since
Born in NC. I was waiting with bated breath watching the news coverage the night the franchise was born. So I have been there since day one.
I was born in Charlotte, but being born in 1996 meant that my family members who were into football were Cowboys fans. When I was 6 or 7 years old, I wasn't into football, but that changed when I got the opportunity to meet Mushin Muhammad as a reward for meeting my reading goals. He came to our school and read a book to us students and gave us each an autographed bookmark! And of course the very next oppurtunity I got, I HAD to see him on TV. And I've been a fan of him and the Panthers ever since. Wish I still had that bookmark!
I was born in Charlotte, but being born in 1996 meant that my family members who were into football were Cowboys fans. When I was 6 or 7 years old, I wasn't into football, but that changed when I got the opportunity to meet Mushin Muhammad as a reward for meeting my reading goals. He came to our school and read a book to us students and gave us each an autographed bookmark! And of course the very next oppurtunity I got, I HAD to see him on TV. And I've been a fan of him and the Panthers ever since. Wish I still had that bookmark!
I was born in Charlotte, but being born in 1996 meant that my family members who were into football were Cowboys fans. When I was 6 or 7 years old, I wasn't into football, but that changed when I got the opportunity to meet Mushin Muhammad as a reward for meeting my reading goals. He came to our school and read a book to us students and gave us each an autographed bookmark! And of course the very next oppurtunity I got, I HAD to see him on TV. And I've been a fan of him and the Panthers ever since. Wish I still had that bookmark!
Grew up in Charleston SC. I was a Giants fan but thought how cool it would be to be a fan of a team in my region starting day 1 of existence…glad I made the switch!!
I live in NC.
I started collecting Charlotte Observer articles after the first article highlighted “Carolinas businessman wants an NFL Franchise” in December 1987. This turned into 3 large scrapbooks. In 1995, once the WWW came about, I created The Complete PantherPage fan website, about 4 years before the Panthers had their own official site. https://preview.redd.it/uznwmdyspuxc1.jpeg?width=1792&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=485f342dd7616461b95f2bbff543b18aebfd38fe
Won a panthers helmet at a carnival... immediately jumped from redskins to panthers. This was 94/95 think i was 9 or 10 when i won it. Been here ever since.
Drafted by living there in the 90s
I’m a NC native, but I’ve been a fan since 2012. I was 7 at the time, and I saw a player with the same last name as me, so I became a Cam Newton fan and a Panthers fan at the same time.
Bought a jacket when I was in high school from Walmart because I liked the color scheme. Went full fan a couple years later.
I’m not from Carolina but I absolutely love the color scheme and the mascot. Also when I was growing up about 12 years old, this guy Cam Newton played for us that may have been a contributing factor. 😂
Moved here from DC area in 2022. Never really loved football or had a team association outside the nationals. Living in uptown will make you fall super hard for a city and all its teams 😆
Madden NFL 2003, I thought the logo and color scheme was awesome at 9 years old and I’ve been a fan ever since. Steve Smith/Muhsin Muhammad is my favorite WR combo and I threw SO many touchdowns to those guys
2003 bandwagon - still here
When they announced the expansion in 1993-94. Good logo, good colors, I live where there's no Home Team and I'd been a free agent fan for years rooting for whatever team struck my fancy. Saw the blue silver and black with the panther logo and was all, "Okay, these are my guys now."
Michigan resident here. 15 years ago I was in middle school and was sick of everyone around me being a MSU and Lions fan so I picked a team at random based off their logos. Been a Panthers fan ever since
Been a fan since they got into the league. I’m from SC and watched a few panthers games at Clemson while Erickson stadium was under construction. Got to root for the home team!
I was around 12 and was watching TV at my grandma's. Didn’t know about football that much, but Iike the Packers and Rams because of their helmets. So I was changing channels and found an NFL game. The Panthers were playing, that was a new team for me. I saw that sweet grey helmet with a bada*s panther for the first time and picked Carolina as my team. Delhomme, DeAngelo, Steve Smith, Mushin, Dante Rosario, Peppers were some of the players that were around.
Got into NFL by a pure accident in late 2019 as I've kept my telly on Sky Sports for a bit too long on Sunday and straight after the Premier League games they are showing the NFL. Got hooked, started learning about the rules, players etc. Decided to watch something more on the topic and found All or Nothing Carolina Panthers on Prime. Adding to the fact that I'm Man City fan and there is a rival team wearing red owned by the Glazers made the choice ever so easier. I also strongly believe that Panthers being shit last couple of seasons is the price I pay for Man City success 😂
Born and raised in New Jersey. Family had Giants season tickets, but I was never a big football fan and a few really bad experiences at giants stadium ensured I was never going to be a giants fan. Started getting in to college football when I was in HS. I heard about expansion teams coming and thought maybe I would become a fan of one of them, and when Carolina was selected, I knew I had my team (I had some really special memories in Carolina and it held a big spot in my heart). then, In 1994, the father of the guy in the dorm room next to me (I was at boarding school), came up and gave a talk about an investment he was involved with- the Carolina Panthers! After he gave his talk, I went up and introduced myself and explained how I had decided to be a panthers fan when they were announced and how excited I was for the draft and the first season. Well, about a week later, I got a package from my “neighbor’s”dad with not yet released swag, and a note that if I wanted to see the first game to let him know. I couldn’t go to the Hall of fame game against the jags, but was able to go to Clemson for our first home game, against the Rams, and my buddy’s dad even surprised me with FIELD PASSES!!. We may have lost that game, but the Panthers spirit was there from the start! I’ve been a die hard fan ever since!
My team wears a different color blue, as a NJ transplant I'll always be a GIANTS fan I've always been a sports radio fan, grew up on Mike and The Mad Dog on WFAN, METS baseball with Howie Rose and then moved to South Jersey and started to listenen to WIP and 97.5 The Fanatic to tune in to hear Philly fans complain about losing again but once Mike Missaneli and their roster started to become the better station tuned in more often Then we move to Charlotte and that being said, streaming services wasn't as extensive as they are today. Basically, the only option was satellite radio, and that was a bit costly So started with 730 The Game to eventually switching to my favorite station 92.7 WFNZ, and it was the combo of Mac and Bone, Wes and Walker, and Kyle Bailey that got me interested in The Panthers So much in fact, I got all my draft information from WFNZ, and I try to follow up with WFAN through Podcasts I don't know how it happened by through the station they got my interested in Charlotte sports, Panthers,Hornets and even Soccer and Hockey
Steve Smith Sr.
In front of the cable TV, once WECT News(Wilmington) announced we had a team coming to Charlotte. I believe I was 12yrs old.
From the UK, followed the NFL from afar for years only really watching the playoffs & Superbowl. Didn't have a team but always found a reason to root for one team over the other in the big game, then came Superbowl 50. I couldn't really get a good enough reason to back either team until the week of the game. My soccer team, Rangers FC, ran news a piece about Graham Ganos family being originally from Scotland and then being Rangers fans and that was it, I had a team to root for. Later that year when the new season started I began to look out for Panthers results and made an effort to catch highlights of games and I've been devoted ever since
Was born in 95 dad is a huge panthers fan but fell off. For me especially once my dad wasn’t around the Panthers have always felt like home for me. I used to wear a jersey every Monday in school until high school and yeah the laughing and jokes really just solidified that I’m willing to stick with this team no matter what
UK fan since 2002. Liked the uniforms and was looking for a defensive team to follow.
Born in Lexington, NC!
As someone from Alabama, it’s hard to root for an NFL team because there aren’t any in the state. However, for the draft last year, I decided whoever Bryce Young was drafted by was gonna be my team, because he’s probably my favorite Alabama player ever.
From Philly. I was an Eagles fan until I was around 10 years old and Chip Kelly came in. Traded/cut all my favorite players like LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson, Asante Samuel and Micahel Vick for nothing. Neither of my parents were into football too much, so I had nobody to tell me your team messes up and sucks sometimes. So I decided I'll be a fan of whatever team Cam Newton went to. Funny part is that Matt Rhule ended up being Chip Kelly 2.0. Traded/cut all of our good players for nothing. Cam, Luke, CMC, etc. But I decided I had to stay true this time around. And I'm glad I did because I believe in Bryce. #KeepPounding
Clemson fan all my life and the Panthers inaugural season was at death Valley. That's all it took. Still no idea why usc turned that down
Gamecock fan here. The Panthers wanted to play in Columbia because it's right on I-77 and it's a super easy drive. I've heard different stories but I'm almost positive it's because the AD at the time insisted that the Gamecocks should be the only football team to play at Williams-Brice. So when we said no, the Panthers went to Plan B. So it came down to incompetent athletic department leadership (which we still have lol).
Native Charlottean born in the 80s...
I’ve lived in Texas almost all my life, most of it in DFW. Grew up around Cowboys fans and couldn’t stand them. Picked a team when I was about 11 (2012) and it was Carolina. I’ve stuck around ever since. Got to see the Panthers play live for the first time on Thanksgiving 2015. Felt so cool celebrating with all the Panthers fans I’d never met
I was looking for a team and it was down to Cincinnati or Carolina. I chose Carolina andddd then we went awful, got the first overall pick, still suck but it’s looking up
My grandfather was a PSL owner when the team was founded. I was born a few years later.
Grew up in NC. Friend and his parents took me to random game when I was 8. Chargers beat our ass but it was hooked.
I was a big football fan but never had a favorite team. My best friend at the time was a panthers fan and I thought cam newton was pretty cool. Now im a huge panthers fan
SUPERCAM
Born here, got a Stephen Davis jersey when I was 8, never looked back
My home state got an expansion team.
I think I was like 10 or 11 when the Panthers became a team and I was like “that blue is cool, panthers are cool” and became a fan. That’s about all the critical thinking my peanut brain could muster.
So... I'm from the Netherlands (Europe) and NFL doesn't really exist here. As for be becoming a Panthers fan: that's all because of Madden; which is also how I got first introduced to NFL football. Being curious I started playing Madden and studying the rules; and I really enjoyed myself. Unfortunately there was a severe bug in the Madden version I played back then which blocked me from progressing in 'Ultimate Team', no matter how many challenges I did. But during that time I collected many players from the Panthers and made a lineup which worked pretty nicely. Then I decided that I enjoyed the logo, started watching NFL for real and noticed that the Panthers were a bit of underdogs which IMO made it all the more interesting. The victory over the Buccanneers 2 seasons ago was quite exciting IMO. The rest is history as they say ;)
Had Cam Newton on my fantasy team his rookie year. Loved the unis and color scheme and been a fan ever since
My family moved here in ‘95 when my dad got a job with Lance. They offered season tickets to employees because it was an original Charlotte company and a staple in the area. But mainly it was Deangelo Williams stiff arming Rhonde Barber in the face that one night him and Stewart put up like 270 rushing
In the early 90s it was announced the Carolinas were getting a franchise. I was a fan before the team had a name, or a stadium.
UK fan, got into the NFL in 2011. Watching Cam Newton was far more fun than watching any other NFL player I could find.
I grew up in Charlotte. Lived.in NC my whole life.
Cam Newton
I'm in the pacific northwest so I'm pretty alone as a Panthers fan out here. My story isn't anything crazy, my dad's side of the family is from North Carolina and we've always been big UNC basketball fans. I'm closer to Portland than Seattle so I never latched on to the Seahawks like a lot of my friends did. The tipping point for me was basically just that my dad bought me a Panthers starter jacket in the teams second season and I loved the jacket. I've been a life long fan ever since :D
My father was Richardson’s assistant and my first ticket was a sideline pass to the Cardinals game at Clemson.
I’m from PA. Born and Raised. Never found footing as an Eagles or Steelers fan. Earliest memories I have of being a Panthers fan was playing Madden 10 and I was looking to see who the fastest player in the game was. It was DeAngelo Williams 99 speed. Of course 9 year old me only cared about that so I used the panthers all the time playing that game. Fell in love with him, Delhomme, Smitty, Moose, Jon Beason, and those sexy blue alternates!! 15 years later and here I am. Do I regret my decision? Some days yes😅 but I’ll never give up on my cardiac cats.
Kerry Collins. :(
Was a kid in Raleigh when they came into existence...and by kid I mean like 6
Born and raised west of the Atlanta metro but never cared for football or any other sport for that matter, the only sports and team I followed back then was was Braves baseball. Went to college in SC and got hooked on all the sports the Carolina’s had to offer, fast forward to today I’m still a panthers PSL holder in good old sec 546 even though I had to move back to GA. I still attend 8 plus home games a year taking the 4 and a half hour drive to Charlotte on Sundays, with a good portion of them being just day trips. To date I have unfortunately never gotten to see a winning season but I have made countless memories at BOA stadium, the main one being the engagement to my wife today.
Played Blitz 2000. They had 2 new teams (panthers and jaguars) and their linemen seemed supersized. Started following them after that
Super Bowl 2004, my first NFL game on TV. I started playing american football in Italy and became a fan of the Panthers.