DC United wants to expand seating at Audi Field, add new roof: report
Audi Field, a soccer-specific stadium is shown in Buzzard Point in Washington, DC on July 9, 2018. - It is the home stadium for the DC United team of Major League Soccer, and will seat 20,000 people. (Photo by Gilles CLARENNE / AFP) (Photo credit sho
WASHINGTON - D.C. United will begin a new season this Saturday and it appears that the club could be eyeing a new beginning for its stadium too.
A new report says the team is thinking about adding more seats and a roof to Audi Field in Southwest D.C.
On Thursday, Axios D.C. reported that D.C. United wants to add up to 10,000 seats and a roof to Audi Field, which is also home to the Washington Spirit, D.C. Power and the United Football League’s D.C. Defenders.
Axios also says that "a roof could enable about 100 more events a year at Audi Field" and "what remains unknown is the potential price tag or whether the team will ask the city for subsidies."
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It comes amid a lot of other stadium talk in D.C. In December, construction officially began on a modernized Capital One Arena, home to the Wizards and Capitals. There’s been plenty of talk about the Commanders potentially moving back to the site of RFK Stadium in Southwest.
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Lisa Delpy Neirotti, a professor of Sports Management at George Washington University, has studied DMV stadium deals for years.
"Every owner would like more opportunities for revenue," Neirotti said. "You know, everybody has seen other people ask for money and to build out, and I think it’s just, you know, ‘why don’t I do it too?’"
As for D.C. United, a team spokesperson tells FOX 5 that they have been evaluating opportunities to enhance the fan experience at Audi Field and expand the number and scope of events for the past 15 months.