REPORT: D.C. Nearing $3B Stadium Deal To Bring NFL Team Back To City
A highly anticipated deal to bring Washington's NFL franchise back to D.C. is reportedly nearing the goal line.
The Washington Commanders and Mayor Muriel Bowser's administration have a framework in place for a more than $3B deal to build a new stadium and surrounding development on the 174-acre RFK Stadium site, NBC4 reported.
The deal isn't finalized, but NBC4 reporter Mark Segraves said on air Wednesday that it is "very close." The team has played in Landover, Maryland, since it vacated RFK Stadium nearly three decades ago.
A source familiar with the conversations confirmed to Bisnow that negotiations between the Commanders and D.C. are ongoing.
The Commanders didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the mayor's office issued a statement Wednesday evening suggesting that a deal for an RFK development could be announced when Bowser releases her 2026 budget proposal.
“In the coming days, we will share more on our growth agenda by highlighting our next budget to grow DC and outlining a plan to realize abundant opportunities at our RFK as we forge ahead with shaping DC’s future economy,” the spokesperson said.
The Commanders would invest $2.5B toward the project as its master developer, constructing both the stadium and mixed-use development on the rest of the site, including residential uses, NBC4 reported. The D.C. government would spend $850M toward infrastructure, including parking structures, that would serve the entire development.
The deal calls for the new stadium to be ready for the 2030 NFL season, NBC4 reported.
The city's investment would be paid over the next seven years starting in fiscal year 2026, but D.C. leaders are still working to resolve issues with this year's budget. Bowser said this week D.C. can avert much of the $1.1B in cuts imposed by Congress, but it still has a $410M shortfall and is beginning to freeze spending.
The stadium project also faces some local opposition. An activist group has launched a campaign to put a ballot question to voters next year that would prohibit a new professional sports stadium from being built on the RFK site, The Washington Post reported.
The District gained control of the RFK site in January after Congress passed a bill in late December to transfer the federally owned property to the city for the next 99 years. Officials said in January they were beginning demolition on the decrepit, 64-year-old stadium, which hasn't had a professional team playing there since Major League Soccer franchise D.C. United left in 2017.
The NFL franchise has played in Northwest Stadium, previously FedEx Field, since 1997. It has a contract on the stadium through 2027 that could be extended as a new one is built.
The Commanders earlier this year hired former JBG Smith executive Andy VanHorn to serve in the new role of head of real estate. VanHorn, who previously worked on the Amazon-anchored National Landing development, is leading efforts to build a new stadium and adjacent real estate for the team.
UPDATE, APRIL 16, 9:30 P.M. ET: This story has been updated to include a statement from the mayor's office.
