Carolina Panthers founder Jerry Richardson died on Wednesday night at his home in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was 86.
Richardson was celebrated for bringing the NFL to Carolina in 1995, but his tenure with the team ended after the 2017 season due to scandal.
"Jerry Richardson's contributions to professional football in the Carolina's are historic,'' current owners David and Nicole Tepper said in a statement. "With the arrival of the Panthers in 1995, he changed the landscape of sports in the region and gave the NFL fans here a team to call their own.