Panthers

North Carolina and South Carolina had never fielded a National Football League team when the league granted a franchise for the region on 26 October 1993. Play began in 1995, the first season staged not in Charlotte but at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, while Bank of America Stadium was still going up; the Panthers moved into their permanent home the following year and have not left since, now filling just over 75,000 seats there.

The team took its early shape around Sam Mills , a linebacker undersized for the position who became the voice behind "Keep Pounding." Julius Peppers finished as its career sacks leader with 159.5, and both he and Mills have since been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Two seasons carried the Panthers furthest: 2003, when Steve Beuerlein-era continuity gave way to a run through the NFC that ended in a 32–19 Super Bowl loss to the New England Patriots, and 2015, when Cam Newton's MVP season and Luke Kuechly's defense produced an NFC Championship before Denver's defense shut them down 24–10 in Super Bowl 50.

The 2025 South title is the club's most recent, the latest marker in a rivalry and a division that show no sign of settling.