About Us
The Roaring Riot began in 2008 when two of the biggest Panthers fans in the world, Zack Luttrell and Joe Ryan, traveled to Atlanta for a Panthers game against the hated Falcons. While sitting amongst a sea of red and black, they noticed there was an opportunity to channel the efforts of diehard Panthers fans who shared the goal of positively affecting the game for their favorite team in a hostile location.
In 2009, the two coordinated the first ever "GA Dome Takeover" with the mission of gathering all Panthers fans who were traveling to Atlanta for the game together for a tailgate party and to sit together as one united fan base. After a successful trip - even with a Panthers' loss - the Roaring Riot was officially born.
By 2013, the group expanded it's away game offerings to morph from just a trip into a full experience: a coordinated, all-inclusive trip to Miami for the Panthers vs Dolphins game, and then again in 2014 to Tampa. The Roaring Riot opened the 2015 season by coordinating a trip to Jacksonville for the season opener against the Jags for over 550 Panthers fans that was more than just a game watch - it was a full weekend of awesomeness that culminated in a Panthers win.
That year also saw the launch of the Roaring Riot membership program which expanded to over 2,100 members its first year and double in size to over 4,600 members in 2016. We've continued to grow every season!
Why the name Roaring Riot?
Roar /rôr/ verb: to make full, deep, prolonged cry uttered by a large wild animal.Why We Do What We Do
When we created the Roaring Riot, our goal was to ultimately CHANGE THE CULTURE of the Carolina Panthers fanbase. That, to us, meant that we wanted to do whatever it took to convert the stereotypical wine-and-cheese Panthers fan into more of a loud-and-proud diehard fan. To encourage our fans to stand and cheer when the Panthers are on defense and not just on third downs. To convince more PSL owners to attend games or, if they must sell their tickets, to do so to other Panthers fans. To create opportunities to travel as a group to away games so that we can create the largest footprint of black and blue in the stands and therefore have the best chance to be seen and heard, positively impacting the game for the Panthers. The Carolina Panthers fanbase had historically been considered one of the weakest in the entire league, but it was time to take the necessary steps to change that.
Since we started using the phrase, it's message has evolved. It still encompasses all of its original meaning, but to us, Change the Culture also means that we can be different from the unruly fanbases who don’t have the ability to be loud for their teams without causing harm to others; it means being able to respect our fellow Panthers fans like they’re an extension of our family; it means connecting every Panthers fan across the world, no matter where they’re living, so that they can find other fans and friends with whom to enjoy our team. All of us have had the experience of watching a Panthers game alone and it is a miserable way to watch the games – let’s make it so that no one ever has to do that if they don’t want to, because football is meant to be shared.
Our Mission
Our mission is to UNITE and GROW the largest community of Carolina Panthers fans across the world who enjoy gathering as a group for events and to show support for their favorite team. It doesn't matter where you are, if you share the same passion and enjoy being around other Panthers fans, then you are part of the Roaring Riot.
UNITY is the core value in everything that we do. We believe that togetherness supersedes all; we travel together - we socialize together - we tailgate together - and most importantly, we sit together at games. It's been proven that we have the most effect on a game when we channel our voices and energy for the same cause. The team notices when we're there, but they REALLY notice when we're all sitting together.
By unifying our efforts as a group, we will continue to GROW our fan base; we grow from making current fans aware that there is a network of Panthers fans they can join no matter where they are located in the world; everyone is always welcome at any of our Chapter events - members or not.
Currently, there are 36 cities which host full chapters of the Roaring Riot; our members are represented in 42 states and eleven countries! You'll never have to watch a game alone again.
Creating change like this doesn’t occur overnight – it takes a hell of a long time. But if we continue to work together then we can enjoy the benefits of witnessing that change and we can set it up so that future Panthers fans have it much better than we did for the franchise’s first decade. – “It has to start somewhere. It has to start sometime. What better place than here? What better time than now?”