The New Washington Football Stadium WILL Have A Roof, But Sadly WILL NOT Have A Moat
Last week we found out the Washington Football Commanders have been scouting 3 less-than-desirable locations for the new stadium in Virginia. It seems more likely than not Dan Snyder is going to build Danny World out in the sticks of Virginia, a long drive without Metro access, so he can continue to his life-long Napoleon Complex instead of doing what everyone wants, building the stadium on the grounds of RFK. But the good news is at least this stadium will have a roof.
Richmond - As the Washington Commanders shop for a new stadium, the question is not whether it will have an enclosure, but what kind of enclosure it will have.
The team is scouting three locations in Virginia for its new stadium, and one lawmaker who saw the team's planning documents said renderings included a semi-translucent roof, like the one at the new SoFi Stadium in California.
The SoFi roof is not retractable, but the sides of the stadium can open to the elements, creating an open-air feel. AT&T Stadium in Dallas has a similar option, but the roof can also open.
Washington president Jason Wright said it's a decision with implications far beyond football.
"I think there's a lot of consideration when you think about a business that expands beyond the core of football," he said during a speech at The Economic Club of Washington D.C. "People don't necessarily want a venue that is just there for 8 or 10 events a year, or we have a few big concerts, maybe 15 a year.
Finally, the first smart thing I've heard from the Washington front office in 2 decades. If you're going to spend a billion dollars on a stadium, you might as well slap a roof on that bad boy so you can get a Taylor Swift concert there. It's such a no-brainer, I am always stunned when cities/teams build a state of the art new stadium and don't cover it up. For instance, they built a brand new baseball stadium in MINNESOTA and kept it open air. The god damn Twins are trying to lure in free agents and have to answer questions about playing in 33 degree weather in April. It's lunacy.
There is bad news though- our dreams of a moat and rock climbing wall on the outside of the stadium have been extinguished.
A few years ago, before Wright signed on, an architecture firm retained by the team released renderings of a new stadium that was fully outdoors, that included a moat around the stadium.
Wright laughed when asked if that was still in play.
"No no no," he said. "No wave pool on the outside."
We want a moat! We want a moat!
If you recall, a few years ago, seemingly out of nowhere, the Washington…I'm still typing Washington Football Team, I'll be honest, Commanders still feels weird off the finger tips…the Washington Commanders released a rendering for a new stadium that looked like this:
It's easily the greatest thing I've ever seen. A beach, people repelling down the outside of the stadium (even though there is clearly nothing they could even be climbing) and someone surfing right smack dab in the middle of it. The fact they have already decided not to do the wave pool nor the rock climbing wall is very upsetting news. Looks like they are already cutting corners and the stadium location hasn't even been decided yet. Sad! They're going to slap this stadium in Dumfries or Dale City and NOT let us climb the outside of it like Alex Honnold? Classic No Fun Snyder strikes again.