CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When eight Charlotte city councilmembers and several city employees head to Germany in November for the Carolina Panthers' game in Munich, newly obtained records show the cost for their flights and hotels alone will approach $80,000.
As WCNC Charlotte uncovered last week, two-thirds of the city council is making the trip, not just for the game, but to also try to recruit and retain German businesses, meet elected leaders there and learn how they're solving urban problems.
Almost a week after WCNC Charlotte's initial story, the city provided a final itinerary for the Charlotte-Munich Trade and Urban Exchange Mission and the names of six staff members who also plan on making the trip.
The traveling party's itinerary shows the group of 14 will be in Germany for up to five nights and will have multiple receptions and meetings throughout their stay. While a spokesperson said the city won't "know the exact total cost" until council members submit reimbursement forms after the trip, hotels are estimated at $825 a night, on average, according to the itinerary. The cost of plane tickets for the days in question, researched by WCNC Charlotte, come in around $1,500.
The city attorney previously said the travelers will have to buy their own tickets to the Panthers' game on Nov. 10.
Amid some criticism, one of the council members going called the mostly taxpayer-backed trip "a great use of resources."
Among other things, the group's itinerary lists a reception with 150 guests, which will include "those traveling to Munich from Charlotte, existing German businesses and prospective German businesses," meetings with the city of Munich, an exclusive NFL Consul General Event with league "representatives, team owners, athletes and Munich VIPs," a visit to a social housing and sustainability site, an exclusive Bavarian government reception, a business lunch with a German company that selected Charlotte as their new North American headquarters, business recruitment sessions and a 75-person business networking reception.
According to a spokesperson, the city's assistant city manager/economic development director, international business manager and chief of protocol, special assistant to the city manager for mobility, chief sustainability officer, housing and neighborhood services director and micromobility program lead will join the eight council members.
A member of the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners is also part of the delegation, along with the county's economic development director.
Contact Nate Morabito at nmorabito@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, X and Instagram.