The Atlantic Coast Conference has pulled this year’s football title game from Charlotte amid the ongoing firestorm over North Carolina’s House Bill 2.

The ACC game, which was to be played Dec. 3 at Bank of America Stadium, had been expected to draw tens of thousands of fans and add millions of dollars to the local economy.

The announcement by the Greensboro-based conference comes two days after the NCAA said it would pull seven championship events out of North Carolina over the controversial law passed in March, which limits antidiscrimination protections for the LGBT community. The NBA in July said it was moving its 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte over the law.

The ACC is relocating the football championship from Charlotte, along with all other neutral-site championships for the 2016-17 year that were to be played in North Carolina.

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“The ACC Council of Presidents reaffirmed our collective commitment to uphold the values of equality, diversity, inclusion and non-discrimination,” read a statement issued after a meeting of the ACC presidents at Clemson University. “We believe North Carolina House Bill 2 is inconsistent with these values.”

The Charlotte Sports Foundation, which has helped put on the football championship game for the past six years, said it respected but was disappointed by the decision.

“We recognize the economic impact moving the game and its events have on the Charlotte area,” said Will Webb, the foundation’s executive director, in a statement. “We will continue to work to bring high impact sporting events to Charlotte in the future, including the possible return of the ACC Football Championship Game.”

The ACC title football game has been held in Charlotte since 2010 and is under contract to be held in the city through 2019. “All locations will be announced in the future from the conference office,” read the statement from the ACC presidents.

Charlotte’s visitor arm estimates the 2015 game here had a total economic impact of $32.4 million.

Republican Gov. Pat McCrory signed HB 2 into law in March to nullify a Charlotte ordinance, which had generated controversy by protecting transgender people who use public restrooms based on their gender identity. The new law also nullified local ordinances around the state that would have expanded protections for the LGBT community.

SHARE COPY LINK North Carolina’s legislature recently passed a law that prevents transgender people from using government-run bathrooms corresponding to the gender with which they identify. The law — House Bill 2 (HB2) — has incited a state-wide civil liberties b

Critics have said HB2 discriminates against LGBT individuals, while proponents say it protects bathroom privacy. The issue has emerged as a major issue in the gubernatorial campaign between McCrory and Democrat Roy Cooper.

In protest, numerous entertainment acts have canceled North Carolina appearances, and corporations have withdrawn projects. The U.S. Department of Justice has sued the state, whose reputation has been battered by comedians and commentators across the country.

The initial flurry of cancellations had slowed over the summer until Monday night’s announcement by the NCAA, which struck North Carolina’s love of basketball and other collegiate sports.

“How many companies and sports organizations have to leave NC before the Governor & NCGA leadership wake up to the 21st Century & repeal HB2?” Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts, who favored the city ordinance, wrote in a tweet after the ACC’s announcement.

Charlotte last month submitted a bid to host NCAA men’s basketball tournament games at the Spectrum Center (the former Time Warner Cable Arena) for three years: 2020-2022. The league said this week it has pushed the decision about those games from December to sometime next year.

SHARE COPY LINK Cary Mayor Harold Weinbrecht talks about economic and other impacts to the town that would result from an NCAA decision to remove seven championships scheduled in North Carolina, including three in Cary, because of House Bill 2.

Tami Fitzgerald, executive director of the NC Values Coalition, criticized the NCAA and ACC in a statement Wednesday.

“The ACC and NCAA announcements are an attempt to force the State of North Carolina to sacrifice our children’s safety on the altar of political correctness, and legislators who voted to stop this trend should think twice before they abandon our children,” she said.

Another major sporting event in Charlotte is the CIAA’s basketball tournament, which has taken place in the city since 2006. The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority estimates its 2015 economic impact to be $55.6 million. The CIAA, the oldest African-American sports conference in the U.S., said this week a possible relocation of its games is at the discretion of its board of directors.

SHARE COPY LINK Duke football coach David Cutcliffe responds Tuesday to a question about the NCAA moving events from North Carolina because of House Bill 2.

“The CIAA Board will continue to discuss and determine how to move forward for the collective interest of our student-athletes and stakeholders and for future of our conference. The CIAA is committed in providing the best experience for our student-athletes and creating a respectful and inclusive culture for our diverse membership and stakeholders,” said a statement from CIAA commissioner Jacqie McWilliams.