CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Charlotte Independence officially introduced Novant Health as the club’s presenting sponsor on Wednesday afternoon in conjunction with the unveiling of the club’s new uniforms ahead of the 2017 USL season.

Novant Health, the Official Healthcare Provider of the Charlotte Independence since the club's inception, will be featured on the front of the team’s jerseys, along with other prominent placement on team apparel, website, print collateral and digital signage.

Under the agreement, Novant Health will be the exclusive provider of medical care to Charlotte Independence players, provide an athletic trainer, team primary care and sports medicine physicians (Dr. Kyle Pope and Dr. Karan Shukla), team orthopedist (Dr. James Romanowski) and on-site medical services on game days. Additionally, a team performance coach will be provided by Novant Health Sports and Performance powered by EXOS.

“Soccer is unique in sports in that a team’s shirt sponsor becomes an indelible part of the team brand,” said Jim McPhilliamy, Independence President & Managing Partner. “We are very happy to have a great organization like Novant Health become part of our team brand. We are looking forward to teaming together to make Charlotte a little better place to live through the world-wide sport of soccer.”

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“Novant Health’s deep commitment to health and wellness is a reflection of our community partnerships, like the one we have with Charlotte Independence,” said Jason Bernd, vice president of Novant Health Charlotte Orthopedic Hospital.  “We are excited to strengthen our partnership with the team this year and look forward to keeping the players healthy with our world-class health care and services.”

“In the offseason, we extended our partnership with Adidas and we are proud to be one of a handful of USL teams working with such an authentic world-wide soccer brand,” said Wade Leaphart, the Independence's Chief Revenue Officer. “As we collaborated on the new design, we wanted something reflective of our relationships. The tan stripe represents Team, while the white stripe represents the Fans, the Sponsors, the City, the Vision…We Are Charlotte. Some could argue the kit is at least as relevant, if not more, than naming rights, in soccer. Having Novant Health on board lends a lot of credibility to what we’ve built. We’re all excited to work together, on and off the field.”