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John Keim, ESPN Staff WriterDec 19, 2024, 03:55 PM ET
- John Keim covers the Washington Commanders for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2013 after a stint with the Washington Post. He started covering the team in 1994 for the Journal Newspapers and later for the Washington Examiner. He has authored/co-authored four books. You can also listen to him on ‘The John Keim Report’, which airs on ESPN Richmond radio, and follow him on Twitter @john_keim
ASHBURN, Va. — The Washington Commanders‘ return to the District of Columbia will be jeopardized if Congress doesn’t pass a spending bill to keep the government open.
But there was one thing DC Mayor Muriel Bowser wanted to make clear Thursday, correcting a tweet from Elon Musk: No money has been allocated for building a new stadium in the continuing resolution bill before Congress.
Musk, who has criticized the overall spending bill, had reposted on X the false information that the bill included $3 billion for a new football stadium, saying “This should not be funded by your tax dollars.”
But the only aspect in the bill relating to a potential stadium was a resolution that would transfer control of the land at the RFK site from congress to the District of Columbia.
“It was stated that the CR contains $3 billion for a stadium,” Bowser told reporters during a press conference in the district Thursday discussing $800 million in arena renovations for the Wizards and Capitals. “All wrong. There are no federal dollars related to the transfer of RFK, and in fact the legislation does not require or link at all to a stadium. We’re talking about how the District can invest in removing blight.”
If the bill passes — whether the same version or a watered-down one — and the transfer is included, it would greatly increase the Commanders’ chances of returning to the site of their glory days, multiple sources have said. Washington played at RFK Stadium from 1961-96, appearing in five Super Bowls and winning three. They have played in Landover, Md., — in what is now called Northwest Stadium — since 1997.
The government would lease the land to the district for 99 years. Bowser said the city currently has a lease on the land for another 14 years — but they could not get the funding to build a stadium with such a short lease.
The RFK site would be the preferred destination for the organization, multiple sources have said, but they can choose to stay in Landover, Md., and build a stadium at their present site. They already own the land. Maryland governor Wes Moore has been consistent in his desire to keep the team, but the state has received guarantees the team would develop the land should they leave.
If the bill fails, or the land transfer isn’t included in a new version then the chances of the Commanders returning to the district diminishes greatly. And if the bill doesn’t pass, then it’s uncertain how long the Commanders would wait to see if it could be voted on at another point.
Commanders owner Josh Harris has said they’d like to have a new stadium by 2030, though that’s not a firm deadline.
“I don’t know if there’s another path this session,” Bowser said. “We’ve done all we’re supposed to do, and this is the vehicle that has been identified — and agreed to by Democrats and Republicans. Have you been to RFK? Anybody? (It is) 177 acres surrounded by asphalt and a stadium that hasn’t been used in 10 years that is a blight on the nation’s capital. Now, I agree with the president-elect on this point: We want to make our nation’s capital the most beautiful capital in the world, so we have to move and free RFK.”
