Skip To Main Content
Sam Spencer on Muck Rack

Sam Spencer

(He/Him)
Charlotte, North Carolina
As seen in: Medium, Substack, The Charlotte Ledger, The Boston Globe, Daily Kos, The Charlotte Observer, NewsBreak, Jenkem Magazine, Q City Metro, South Charlotte Weekly and
Covers:  MLS, NWSL, USL Super League, Minor League Soccer, Sports
Urban planner. Transit nerd. Public servant. Writes about Football ⚽. Union Berlin Mitglied, Dons Trust Member. Views my own. He/Er 🏳️‍🌈
Back to Sam Spencer’s profile

Sam Spencer’s Journalist Portfolio

View as a grid

Adilson Malanda Finds His Place on the Charlotte FC Pitch | Queen City Nerve

Adilson Malanda Finds His Place on the Charlotte FC Pitch | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — Adil. Adi. Malanda. Adilson. The players and staff of Charlotte FC have different nicknames for their 21-year-old French defender, but the modest Adilson Malanda doesn't insist on any particular iteration. "They're all the same to me," he told Queen City Nerve as we set up a microphone and camera for our interview at Bank of America stadium in April.
Who shared?

Charlotte FC Responds to Real Salt Lake, the Red Bulls and Racism in the MLS | Queen City Nerve

Charlotte FC Responds to Real Salt Lake, the Red Bulls and Racism in the MLS | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — In recent weeks, Charlotte FC (1-4-2, 5 points) had looked like a team on the rebound, notching a win in Orlando followed by two draws - one at home against the New York Red Bulls and another north of the border in Toronto.
Who shared?

Charlotte FC Plagued with Tragedy and Struggles to Start Season 2 | Queen City Nerve

Charlotte FC Plagued with Tragedy and Struggles to Start Season 2 | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — With a three-match losing streak to start the season on top of the tragic and incalculable loss of defender Anton Walkes, morale on Mint Street is low. The team has looked disorganized on the pitch, has only one goal all season, and is sitting in last place as of this writing.
Who shared?

Charlotte Faces St. Louis Tonight

Charlotte Faces St. Louis Tonight

Soccer Sheet by Y’all Weekly — Last Saturday, Charlotte FC suffered an underwhelming 0:1 loss against the New England Revolution, while St. Louis CITY SC exceeded expectations in a 2:3 win against Austin FC. Along with our sister publications Y'all Weekly and STL 630, we're in the Lou for Charlotte FC's first away match of the year - and the first-ever MLS league match at the CITYPARK in downtown St.
Who shared?

Y'all Weekly Special: Charlotte Remembers Anton Walkes

Y'all Weekly Special: Charlotte Remembers Anton Walkes

Y’all Weekly — On Wednesday, January 18, Charlotte FC defender Anton Walkes was involved in a boating accident off the coast of Virginia Key in Miami, Fla. The London-born soccer player died the next morning at the age of 25, leaving behind a daughter and a partner.
Who shared?

The Official End-of-Season Charlotte FC Report Card | Queen City Nerve

The Official End-of-Season Charlotte FC Report Card | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — While I was watching Charlotte FC's 2-0 loss to the New York Red Bulls at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, NJ on Saturday, I felt like a high school senior after AP exams. Charlotte had already missed the playoffs due to their loss in the previous match; that wasn't going to change.
Who shared?

Charlotte FC Drops Out of Playoff Contention with Draw | Queen City Nerve

Charlotte FC Drops Out of Playoff Contention with Draw | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — An old saying in American sports is that a tie is like kissing your sister. Rarely, however, is a tie as disappointing as Charlotte FC's 2-2 draw with the Columbus Crew on Wednesday night.
Who shared?

Charlotte FC Determined Not to Let Ian Spoil Fan Appreciation Night | Queen City Nerve

Charlotte FC Determined Not to Let Ian Spoil Fan Appreciation Night | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — It's raining, it's pouring, but Charlotte FC is still planning on scoring. Even as Hurricane Ian ravaged central Florida on its way to the Carolinas and many Charlotte-area school systems pivoted to virtual instruction on Friday, Charlotte FC is still preparing to host the top-ranked Philadelphia Union at home at 5:30 p.m.
Who shared?

Charlotte FC Players Share Their Opinions on the City | Queen City Nerve

Charlotte FC Players Share Their Opinions on the City | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — If you're reading our soccer column for in-depth commentary and analysis on Charlotte FC, I'm keeping that part short this week. Karol Świderski finally overcame Charlotte FC's streak of bad luck to score two goals on Saturday against the Chicago Fire, as well as a third that was disallowed on a dubious call.
Who shared?

Talk Shifts to Rebuilding as Charlotte FC Hits Home Stretch | Queen City Nerve

Talk Shifts to Rebuilding as Charlotte FC Hits Home Stretch | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — The Charlotte Football Club's inaugural campaign is heading towards a denouement, not an exciting finish, as "rebuilding" has replaced "playoffs" as the keyword heard most often in the tunnels of Bank of America Stadium.
Who shared?

What Charlotte FC Needs To Do To Make the Playoffs | Queen City Nerve

What Charlotte FC Needs To Do To Make the Playoffs | Queen City Nerve

Queen City Nerve — Charlotte FC's playoff chances were on life support going into their Aug. 17 match against New York City FC. The Crown Club suffered two defeats in a row, including an embarrassing 5-0 loss to Los Angeles FC on Aug. 13, and had fallen close to the bottom of the Eastern Conference table.
Who shared?

Charlotte FC Fires Head Coach Miguel Ángel Ramírez, Major Departures Announced

Charlotte FC Fires Head Coach Miguel Ángel Ramírez, Major Departures Announced

Soccer Sheet by Y’all Weekly — On Tuesday Morning, Charlotte FC announced head coach Miguel Ángel Ramírez has been let go. "This is a difficult decision, but one we feel is best for the team at this time," said Owner David Tepper. "I want to thank Miguel and his staff for their hard work during our first season and wish them the best in their future endeavors."
Who shared?

Week 4 In Review: Charlotte FC Bags its First Win

Week 4 In Review: Charlotte FC Bags its First Win

Queen City Nerve — I love being the bearer of good news: Charlotte Football Club broke its three-game losing streak with a 3-1 win over the New England Revolution on Saturday! The team got off to a great start with a Karol Swiderski goal in just the sixth minute of play and never let up.
Who shared?

Charlotte FC's First Three Weeks: The Good, The Bad, and The Midfield

Charlotte FC's First Three Weeks: The Good, The Bad, and The Midfield

Queen City Nerve — First, the good news: On Sunday, March 13, Adam Armour scored Charlotte FC's first-ever goal off a Ben Bender corner kick. The game was almost a draw; hosts Atlanta United didn't score their second goal until near the end of stoppage time. Now the bad: "Almost" doesn't win matches.
Who shared?

Charlotte FC Wakes Up City's 'Sleeping Giant' Soccer Scene

Charlotte FC Wakes Up City's 'Sleeping Giant' Soccer Scene

Queen City Nerve — On Saturday night, Charlotte Football Club set the Major League Soccer attendance record with 74,479 fans in attendance for the first home game. In the hours before kickoff, thousands of supporters tailgated across Uptown.
Who shared?

I'm a former member of the Electoral College. I now believe that institution has become a threat ...

I'm a former member of the Electoral College. I now believe that institution has become a threat ...

QCity Metro — In December of 2008, I was one of North Carolina's 15 presidential electors for then-Senators Barack Obama and Joe Biden. At only 23 years old, I was honored to give the nominating speech for Vice President-elect Biden, who I had worked for in Iowa.
Who shared?

The inequities in HBCU funding - The Boston Globe

The inequities in HBCU funding - The Boston Globe

The Boston Globe — In the year 1837, my alma mater, Davidson College, was founded in the antebellum South. In the same year, Cheyney University, the first historically Black college or university, opened its doors in Pennsylvania. For the next 184 years, American government and civil society would be much kinder to Davidson and predominately white institutions than it would be to Cheyney and HBCUs.
Who shared?

Equity and the Battle for the Soul of Charlotte

Equity and the Battle for the Soul of Charlotte

Medium — Equity is a key goal of the Charlotte Future 2040 Comprehensive Plan. Many of the policies and strategies in the plan are unified around that goal.
Who shared?

Addressing and Rebutting the Astroturf Campaign Against Charlotte's Comprehensive Plan

Addressing and Rebutting the Astroturf Campaign Against Charlotte's Comprehensive Plan

Medium — In politics, an "astroturf campaign" is a campaign that is meant to look like it comes from the grassroots but, in reality, is funded by special interests with deep pockets. Enter " Let's Get It Right, Charlotte ," paid for by The Real Estate and Building Industry Coalition (REBIC).
Who shared?

Charlotte 2040 is about choosing to be better

Charlotte 2040 is about choosing to be better

The Charlotte Observer — OPINION AND COMMENTARY The Charlotte Future 2040 Comprehensive Plan is the most progressive policy document the City of Charlotte has ever produced. That's one of the main reasons for the sudden, coordinated opposition to the plan this week, in spite of the fact that the plan has been under development for the past three years, and the public draft has been available since October.
Who shared?

Sales tax hike is performative, not transformative

Sales tax hike is performative, not transformative

The Charlotte Observer — OPINION AND COMMENTARY Throughout Charlotte's history, we've been a crossroads: for indigenous trading paths, then railroads, and now connecting flights. We're often at the crossroads of history, too: unjust taxation or independence; segregation or integration; and now, inequity or justice.
Who shared?

A Republican and Democrat agree on MLS in Charlotte

A Republican and Democrat agree on MLS in Charlotte

The Charlotte Observer — Major League Soccer would be an exciting economic and cultural boon for Charlotte that would bring a diverse cross-section of Charlotte together in a way no other sport or activity could. However, the current plan to bring MLS to Charlotte has also brought us - a Democrat and a Republican - together in opposition to the project.
Who shared?