The Washington Commanders are another step closer to the possibility of returning to the franchise’s former home in the nation’s capital.
A provision to transfer the land that is the site of the old RFK Stadium from the federal government to the District of Columbia is included in Congress’ short-term spending bill, which lawmakers are racing to pass with a vote this week.
It’s a significant victory for the organization and the NFL after controlling owner Josh Harris and commissioner Roger Goodell lobbied lawmakers on Capitol Hill regarding the D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act earlier this month.
Mayor Muriel Bowser called it a “giant step forward” to unlocking the site’s potential.
“As a city, we have worked for years to get control of the RFK campus,” Bowser said. “We’re celebrating this moment, and we’re looking to the future of a field of possibilities on the banks of the Anacostia.”
One possibility is obviously a football stadium.
The Commanders are considering places in the district, Maryland and Virginia to build a stadium in the coming years. Their lease at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md., runs through 2027, and Harris called 2030 a “reasonable target” for a new one.
The team played at RFK Stadium, which is 2 miles east of the Capitol, from 1961 to 1996 before moving to Maryland. Harris and several co-owners, including Mitch Rales and Mark Ein, grew up as Washington football fans during that era, which included the glory days of three Super Bowl championships from 1982 to 1991.
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., praised the move as evidence Congress is doing its job to oversee the city.
“This landmark legislation will unlock the district’s full potential, generate meaningful new jobs, and add millions in additional city revenue for the nation’s capital,” Comer said in a statement. “Without Congressional action, this land would remain vacant, leaving ongoing maintenance costs and liabilities to burden the American taxpayer. Now is the time to get the federal government out of the way and empower local officials to clean up the RFK site, invest and create new economic opportunities.”