First images of the 2030 project draw comparisons to RFK and “freight trains” as fans debate the design’s “wow factor.”
WASHINGTON — The Washington Commanders’ new home, projected to open for the 2030 NFL season, took a significant step toward reality this week as the team and architecture firm HKS released images of what the stadium could look like.
Knowing the passionate Commanders fan base would have their thoughts on the design reveal, I collected some in an attempt to gauge just how well, or otherwise, the new stadium sat, upon first glance.
The results are a mixture of good and bad from those loyal to Washington, displaying conflicting opinions of what is liked and disliked about the concept. Of course, we’d expect nothing less from a structure that’s about to go up in our Nation’s most hotly debated district.
And the comments didn’t just come in from locals. We heard from local fans and even overseas Commanders fans like Maurits Broersen, who commented, “I like it, but I hate it. It’s too modern, but I guess that’s where all stadiums are headed.”
Others, like Rob Dutton, appreciated the history built into the modern stadium, especially the “nod to RFK in its silhouette,” and he especially loved the roof idea.
“Designed to link the city’s historic core with the Anacostia River and neighboring landscapes, the stadium will feature a sculpted, transparent domed roof that establishes a dynamic yet respectful profile rising to welcome visitors from the north and south while maintaining a lower presence along the east–west axis in deference to the U.S. Capitol and monuments,” the team’s press release shared.
Fans debate the “Freight Train” look
That roof, and the “continuous colonnade,” the columns we see in the image that circles the entire stadium complex, have also become part of the differences in opinion.
Rod Grimes, a fan of the franchise for 60 years, shared with WUSA9 that he feels the images look “Iconic, stately, DC look. It would fit in with the rest of the city. Pretty good first look!”
Another, Dr. Wonderful Faison, likes the overall concept, but also shared that from a certain angle, the design “looks like the side of a freight train. Not sure that’s the look they’re going for.”
Of course, fans also understand that placing a new stadium in a historic district is a nuanced idea. While we’ve seen the rise of modern-day wonders like SoFi Stadium, also designed by HKS, this project aimed to be more respectful of the landscape it would join, rather than something meant to shake up the skyline or cityscape.
“It’s not as futuristic looking as the original,” says fan Ricky King. “But [it] blends with the DC architecture. Very nice, but lacks the wow factor.”
Building a “Patriot Place” in D.C.
I suppose, if some view the stadium as too modern for The District yet not as modern as others, perhaps HKS and Washington got it right down the middle.
The stadium is just part of it, however, and as much as it is the crown jewel of the project, we also know that the intent is for the entirety of the effort to impact more than just NFL game days in the future.
Another fan, Rob Dutton, noted how the images were, “Almost very ‘Patriots’-esque in terms of making a little town around it.”
Gillette Stadium and Patriot Place in Foxborough, Massachusetts, are considered, in many ways, innovators in concept and design within NFL circles. In 2002, the stadium opened as a standalone structure, but in 2006, the Patriots, led by the Kraft family, began developing Patriot Place, a “lifestyle center” that would sit on the old stadium parking lots.
Others have since followed suit, including AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, which also has the team’s practice facility and a commercial district in the immediate area. Once, as we all tend to do at one point or another, I forgot my laptop charger in my hotel while covering a Washington game against the Cowboys, and was extremely pleased to learn I could just run across the street to buy a new one. Crisis averted, thanks to modern planning.
The aforementioned SoFi Stadium was also designed as a ‘city within a city’, with Hollywood Park just outside the stadium gates.
With that ‘town’ in mind, some continue to wonder about the broader impact on the community and even on the ease of travel to and from the site, with questions about metro systems, hotels, dining, shopping, and other entertainment and infrastructure features that will be included.
Not every fan is going to love it, but none seem to hate it, and that’s a win in the court of public opinion as far as I can tell.