Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), parent company of the NBA’s Washington Wizards and the NHL’s Washington Capitals, along with their Capital One Arena, has given a fresh look at the $800m (£639.4m/€769.9m) revamp planned for the venue as the starting gun was officially fired on the project.
MSE founder and CEO, Ted Leonis, was present, along with the likes of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, as images of the new exterior design and additional interior renderings for the new-look Capital One Arena were unveiled yesterday (Thursday).
Construction has formally begun after unanimous approval on the development and finance agreements from the D.C. Council, signed by Bowser, were detailed earlier this week. Six phases of construction will span three years and will be delivered in time for the 2027-28 NBA and NHL seasons.
“The arena will be a marvel of modern design and technology, the intersection of style and comfort and a futuristic and first-class fan experience from street to seat,” Leonis said. “In this greatest city in the world with its extraordinary and historic monuments, we believe this building will be a monument but built on momentum – something bold and bright for now and the future.”
Bowser added: “We know what our sports teams mean to DC, and we’re proud to be partnering with Ted Leonsis and Monumental Sports to deliver a once-in-a-generation investment in the future of our city.
“It’s a catalytic investment that’s good for our Downtown, our city, as well as the teams, fans, and entire region. Thank you to the neighbours, business owners, advocates, and everyone else who stayed in the fight with us.”
D.C. Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to finalise a deal that was first agreed in March. MSE reached an agreement with the District of Columbia to carry out major renovation work at Capital One Arena, after plans were dropped for an entertainment district in Virginia that would have housed a new arena for the Wizards and Capitals.
The District committed to financing of $500m towards a renovation of Capital One Arena, the current home of the two franchises. D.C. will also provide an additional $15m towards improvements of the alley connecting Capital One Arena to the Gallery Place shopping centre.
MSE announced in December last year that it had reached the framework of an agreement for a public-private partnership to create a new entertainment district in Alexandria, Virginia. Had the proposal been finalised, the Capitals and Wizards could have relocated to Virginia as early as 2028, but MSE will now commit a minimum of $285m under the scheme that will result in a major overhaul of Capital One Arena, locking in the two teams’ future at the venue.
In recent weeks, MSE has begun to shed light on what is planned. In October, MSE and Mayor Bowser announced the introduction of legislation supporting the public-private partnership for the major redevelopment of Capital One Arena, with the first renderings being revealed.
Clark Construction Group, Gensler and CAA Icon were also appointed as partners for the project, while plans for The Vaults, a new set of luxury suites at Capital One Arena, were unveiled and further renderings released last week.
Further details of the design vision can be found here, but fans of the Capitals and Wizards will be able to access the most premium new spaces as early as the 2025-26 season, as these will be completed during the first phase of construction. The creation of The Vaults will mark the landmark first step in Capital One Arena’s transformation process.
“Monuments are spaces for our community to convene and admire and celebrate greatness and a shared sense of togetherness,” Leonsis added. “The new Capital One Arena will be an epic focal point for the community and a symbol for the resurgence of downtown. It will continue to be an economic driver and a source of pride and joy for the community.”
Breakthrough reached for RFK Stadium
Meanwhile, in a surprising turn of events that ended in the early hours of Saturday morning, the prospect of the NFL’s Washington Commanders returning to the site of their former home is now back on the cards.
A potential hammer blow had seemingly been dealt on Thursday to a project that appeared to have been given new life earlier this week. Congressional leaders appended the D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act (H.R. 4984) as part of a government funding bill released Tuesday.
The legislation was rolled out ahead of today’s government shutdown and included a provision that transfers control of the site of the now defunct Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus from the federal government to the city of D.C. for 99 years.
The RFK legislation was introduced in summer 2023 and could allow a new stadium or another mixed-use development to be built at the site of RFK Stadium, boosting Bowser’s efforts to lure the Commanders back to the city.
The NFL franchise has played at Northwest Stadium in Maryland, some five miles east of Washington, D.C., since 1997. Before then, RFK Stadium was its home for 35 years.
The land transfer provision was on Thursday removed from a revised, short-term spending bill that lawmakers were looking to pass before the shutdown. The change came after President-elect Donald Trump and his billionaire advisor Elon Musk criticised and rejected the initial package.
This news appeared to have dealt a fatal blow to the legislation, only for it to be pass the U.S. Senate by unanimous consent at around 1:15am local time on Saturday. The Washington Post said this was achieved after Bowser secured last-minute commitments with senators who opposed the bill to ensure not a single one would object.
The bill will permit Bowser to formally negotiate with the Commanders, with the Mayor stating: “It was very important to me that after more than two years of work going through the entire process (in Congress) that we deliver on what we need for the city and what I promised the city, and that is to get control of this land so that we can make it productive. So we can have jobs and recreation and sports and access to the river.”
Following the news, Commanders managing partner Josh Harris said in a statement: “We are extremely grateful that our elected officials have come together on a bipartisan basis to give Washington D.C. the opportunity to decide the future on the RFK Stadium site.
“This bill will create an equal playing field so that all potential future locations for the home of the Washington Commanders can be fairly considered and give our franchise the opportunity to provide the best experience for all our fans.”
