• Loading stock data...
Friday, June 6, 2025

How D.C.’s Capital One Arena Deal Flies Against the Grain

  • The somewhat unusual agreement both codifies and furthers an arena renovation deal struck in the spring.
  • The pact is seen as the most efficient use of public funds to improve the venue.
Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Monumental Sports & Entertainment founder and chairman Ted Leonsis is again going against the grain as he and the District of Columbia remake Capital One Arena. 

Seven months after Leonsis and the parent company of the NBA’s Wizards, NHL’s Capitals, and WNBA’s Mystics struck a surprise renovation deal with the District and abandoned a proposed $2 billion arena and mixed-use development in Virginia, D.C. mayor Muriel Bowser and the council there are now advancing legislation to purchase Capital One Arena and lease it back to Monumental. 

The $87.5 million deal will see Capital One Arena, which was privately owned as part of the Monumental portfolio, become publicly owned. Monumental will then lease the building back from the District, paying a minimum of $1.5 million until at least 2050, and it will retain venue operating rights. If lease extensions potentially going to 2070 are all exercised, Monumental’s annual lease payments will reach $3.3 million. 

The deal, however, differs from many other arenas around the country where teams increasingly prefer to have full ownership of the venue, even if it was originally built with taxpayer funds.  

The arena purchase price will be part of the District’s broader $515 million contribution toward the renovation of Capital One Arena. Leonsis and Monumental are committed to spending at least $285 million toward the project, which will dramatically remake the 27-year-old venue. 

Monumental is fully behind the arena sale-and-leaseback plan, and the legislation codifies several months of negotiations following the original renovation deal struck in the spring. The Capital One Arena renovations are due for completion in 2028. 

“This structure creates the most efficiency for the use of the public funds and have that go directly into the building,” Monica Dixon, Monumental chief administrative officer and president of external affairs, tells Front Office Sports. “It’s really about creating that efficiency and having the best operation possible of this public-private partnership.”

Bigger Vision

While the overall footprint of the remade Capital One Arena remains far smaller than the expansive project contemplated in the ultimately scuttled deal in Alexandria, Va., there are still plans to stretch beyond the current venue walls.

The overall D.C.-Monumental deal also includes an expansion of more than 200,000 square feet to the arena footprint into the neighboring Gallery Place, allowing Leonsis to get at least a portion of the additional space that was fundamental to the Virginia plan.

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Apr 29, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez (44) points to the dugout after hitting an RBI single during the seventh inning against the Detroit Tigers at Daikin Park.

Trump Travel Ban Not Expected to Impact MLB, NBA—for Now

The ban is a full restriction on 12 countries and a partial ban on others.
NBA Finals

NBA Finals Continue to Strip Away Pageantry

Fans once again complained about the lack of visible Finals markings.

Silver: NBA Local Media Woes Could Hurt Expansion Momentum

Las Vegas and Seattle have long been rumored as expansion cities.
Tony Clark

Everything You Need to Know About the MLBPA-OneTeam FBI Investigation

Money from lucrative group licensing deals is under federal scrutiny.

Featured Today

August 31, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; The Goodyear blimp flies over Ohio Stadium during the first half of Saturday’s NCAA Division I football game between the Akron Zips and the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Why the Goodyear Blimp Is at Every Major Sports Event

The airship wasn’t built to cover sports. Now it’s a regular presence.
May 27, 2015; Paris, France; Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) knocks the clay off her shoe during her match against Simona Halep (ROU) on day four of the French Open at Roland Garros
June 4, 2025

Roland-Garros’s Iconic Red-Clay Surface Is a Precise Alchemy

The exact science behind maintaining the French Open’s red clay.
Alex Jensen introductory press conference on Monday, March 17, 2025.
June 3, 2025

Alex Jensen Started Utah Utes HC Job While Still Coaching the Mavs

How Jensen began building an NCAA program while patrolling the Dallas sideline.
May 31, 2025

PSG and the City of Paris Can Join European Soccer’s Elite

What a maiden Champions League title would mean for the French club.
Soccer

Chicago Stars Aren’t Asking for Taxpayer Stadium Money—Yet

A unique new law will compel Illinois lawmakers to consider women’s teams.
June 2, 2025

Bears Suburban Stadium Deal Inching Forward Despite Cost Questions

State legislators discussed a Bears-friendly bill, but ran out of time.
June 3, 2025

While Bears and White Sox Stall, Chicago Fire Make Stadium Move

The proposed $650 million stadium will be privately financed.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

In Episode 7 of Portfolio Players, go inside the boardroom with Avenue Capital CEO and former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry on Giannis’s future, women’s sports, and upstart leagues like TGL and Unrivaled. 
Dec 26, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; A general view of Soldier Field before a game between the Chicago Bears and Seattle Seahawks
May 30, 2025

Pritzker Was a Hard ‘No’ on Bears Stadium. Now Maybe Not

The state spent $100,000 on a legal consultant.
May 30, 2025

Chiefs, Royals Stadium Plans Hit Political Wall As Both Parties Say No

Both Republicans and Democrats in Missouri oppose public funding for stadiums.
Feb 14, 2024; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of the Kansas City Royals 1985 and 2015 World Series championships on the scoreboard at Kauffman Stadium at the Truman Sports Complex.
May 28, 2025

Chiefs, Royals Stadium Public Funding Standoff Nears Endgame

Missouri legislators will review stadium bonds for the Chiefs and Royals.
U.S. Women's Golf
May 27, 2025

U.S Women’s Open Will Play on Courses Once Reserved for Men

Erin Hills Golf Course in Wisconsin is hosting this week’s tournament.