ACC spurns Raleigh, moves headquarters from Greensboro to Charlotte

Today, the ACC announced that it will be moving its headquarters from Greensboro to Charlotte, NC.

The ACC Board of Directors, representing all 15 member institutions, today announced that the conference office will relocate its headquarters to Charlotte, North Carolina in 2023.

Read more: https://t.co/LY2OOpAW58 pic.twitter.com/W6OJqIp9u4

— The ACC (@theACC) September 20, 2022

The ACC has been headquartered in Greensboro, NC since it was formed in 1953, however that will no longer be the case in 2023.

The move was not without some controversy. In November we posted about Raleigh’s mayor lobbying for the headquarters in the state’s capital city.

Raleigh mayor Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin is throwing Raleigh’s hat into the competition for the relocation of the ACC headquarters.

Should Raleigh beat out Charlotte and Atlanta? Let’s hear the arguments!https://t.co/T5CvUczjf2

— Pack Insider (@PackInsider) November 9, 2021

Obviously, we’re biased on this one, but to be fair, the ACC is built around the Tobacco Road rivalries. Raleigh, the home of NC State, is just 30 minutes from both Durham (Duke) and Chapel Hill (UNC). It also is the capital of North Carolina. So to us, it makes the most sense. However, we don’t get a vote, and like usual, Charlotte gets the nod (The ACC’s new headquarters will be located in Uptown Charlotte in the Bank of America Tower.)

Sadly, Raleigh appears to not have even been in the final 3.

Greensboro, Charlotte and Orlando (?) were the finalists.

Maybe they didn’t want to seem partial to their cash cows, but when has that stopped them before? Maybe this was about incentives (most likely). The state offered $15 million to stay in state and commit to 15 years but it’s not disclosed if Charlotte also ponied up some extra cash to get it in their city.

The ACC noted Charlotte’s eastern time zone (which Raleigh has), it’s population growth (which ranks behind the Triangle’s), its population diversity (which is on par with the Triangle’s) and its large airport (which is bigger than Raleigh’s, but both are international).

So whatever the REAL reason is for not even including Raleigh in the final 3, it’s no surprise to anyone. Charlotte has continued to win the battle for sports in the state of NC, and it doesn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.

By choosing a city in NC, the ACC has agreed to hold an additional four men’s basketball tournaments in the state (including two in Greensboro), an additional four women’s basketball tournaments in the state, an additional four baseball postseason tournaments and 20 other postseason tournaments by 2034. Those events are in addition to those already scheduled for North Carolina (WRAL).