CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Sports marketer Max Muhleman, who was credited with the concept of developing the permanent seat license in professional sports and helping the Carolina Panthers and Charlotte Hornets land expansion teams, has died at 88.
Muhleman died Saturday in Charlotte peacefully after battling some heart-related issues, his son Lee Muhleman told The Associated Press.
Muhleman worked closely with Panthers founder Jerry Richardson in his quest to bring an NFL franchise to the Carolinas in the early 1990s. Muhleman delivered the closing marketing pitch at the October 1993 owners' meetings for Richardson, who would ultimately be unanimously awarded the league's 29th franchise.