Former names | MCI Center (1997–2006) Verizon Center (2006–2017) |
---|---|
Address | 601 F Street Northwest |
Location | Washington, D.C. |
Coordinates | 38°53′53″N 77°1′15″W / 38.89806°N 77.02083°WCoordinates: 38°53′53″N 77°1′15″W / 38.89806°N 77.02083°W |
Public transit |
Washington Metro at Gallery Place |
Owner | Monumental Sports and Entertainment |
Operator | Monumental Sports and Entertainment |
Capacity |
Basketball: 20,674 (1997–2002) 20,173 (2002–2010) 20,278 (2010–2011) 20,282 (2011–2012) 20,308 (2012–2013) 20,356 (2013–present) Ice hockey: 19,740 (1997–1999) 18,672 (1999–2002) 18,277 (2002–2010) 18,398 (2010–2011) 18,506 (2011–present) |
Field size | 1,020,000 square feet (95,000 m2) |
Construction | |
Broke ground | October 18, 1995 |
Opened | December 2, 1997 |
Construction cost | US$260 million ($388 million in 2016 dollars) |
Architect |
Ellerbe Becket Devrouax & Purnell KCF-SHG Architects |
Project manager | Seagull Bay Sports, LLC. |
Structural engineer | Delon Hampton & Associates |
Services engineer | John J. Christie Associates |
General contractor | Clark/Smoot |
Tenants | |
Washington Wizards (NBA) (1997–present) Washington Capitals (NHL) (1997–present) Georgetown Hoyas (NCAA) (1997–present) Washington Mystics (WNBA) (1998–present) Washington Power (NLL) (2001–2002) Washington Valor (AFL) (2017–present) |
Capital One Arena, formerly known as MCI Center and Verizon Center, is a sports and entertainment arena in Washington, D.C.
Located in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., Capital One Arena sits atop the Gallery Place rapid transit station of the Washington Metro.
Capital One Arena is home to the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association (NBA), Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL), the Georgetown University men's basketball team, the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), the Washington International Horse Show and was formerly the home of the Washington Power of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) from 2001 to 2002, and most recently the Washington Valor Arena Football League franchise. The Washington Valor drew an average home attendance of 11,179 in the 2017 AFL season, the highest in the league in their inaugural season. The arena's seating capacity is 20,308 for basketball and 18,506 for ice hockey.
Capital One Arena is owned by Monumental Sports & Entertainment and is situated on top of land leased from the District of Columbia. Capital One Arena was built in the mid-1990s solely with private financing and was originally owned by Abe Pollin from 1997 to June 2010. On June 10, 2010, following Pollin's death in November 2009, the Pollin family sold Capital One Arena, along with the Washington Wizards and the Washington-Baltimore area Ticketmaster franchise, to Ted Leonsis, who already owned the arena's other tenant, the Washington Capitals. Leonsis subsequently formed a new management company—Monumental Sports & Entertainment. Capital One Arena is largely considered to be a commercial success and is regarded as one of the driving catalysts of the revitalization (and gentrification) of Washington, D.C.'s Chinatown neighborhood. A report emerged in May 2015 that Verizon would not renew its naming rights to the Verizon Center when its agreement with Monumental ends in 2018. In the same week, it was announced that Capital One signed a deal to become the official bank of the arena, sparking speculation that Capital One might be the leading contender to assume naming rights in 2017. However, on August 9, 2017, it was announced Verizon Center would be renamed Capital One Arena, effective immediately.