Connect with us

DC Defenders

XFL 2020 Cities Review: Washington DC

Washington D.C., The New York-New Jersey Metropolitan Area & Los Angeles were among the eight cities and venues chosen to be the home sites when The XFL relaunches in February 2020. XFL Commissioner & Chief Executive Oliver Luck also said that there will be franchises in Houston, St. Louis, Seattle, Tampa & Dallas when the league kicks off the weekend of Feb. 8th-9th.

“After months of research and consideration, we’re thrilled to announce the cities and venues of The XFL’s eight inaugural teams,” said Luck. “We are committed to being ingrained in the local community and extremely fortunate that our teams will have world-class facilities to call home.”

Washington DC

Where Will The XFL Team In DC Play

The XFL says that The D.C. Team will play at Audi Field in Buzzard Point, which is also home to The MLS’ DC United. The football league founded by WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon will be absent in several of the largest television markets: Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston & Atlanta. It will have a 45-Man active roster and play a 10-week regular season. The XFL hopes to deliver a fan-centric, innovative experience, including fast-paced games and a family friendly environment, complemented by cross-platform viewing options and real-time fan engagement. McMahon’s league played only one season in 2001 and then folded just after that first season. D.C. did not have a team during that season.

It is being said that all eight teams will be league-owned, similar to The 2001 version of The XFL. McMahon is spending more time and as much of $500 million on the new XFL. D.C. United owns and operates The $500 Million Audi Field (The District did secure the land for the stadium before handing it over to the club). United will collect rent from The XFL for use of the stadium, which has only hosted soccer to this point. United will likely welcome the new revenue after years of renting RFK Stadium from The District. Soccer fans may not be as welcoming. The XFL season would coincide, at least partially, with The Major League Soccer Season, which means that the field could be lined for football during some soccer matches.

Washington DC Sports Teams

Washington is one of 13 cities in The United States with teams from all Four Major Professional Men’s Sports and is home to One Major Professional Women’s Team. The Washington Wizards (National Basketball Association), The Washington Capitals (National Hockey League) and The Washington Mystics (Women’s National Basketball Association) play at The Capital One Arena in Chinatown. Nationals Park, which opened in Southeast D.C. in 2008, is home to The Washington Nationals (Major League Baseball). D.C. United (Major League Soccer) plays at Audi Field as mentioned above. The Washington Redskins (National Football League) play at FedExField in nearby Landover, Maryland.

Current D.C. Teams have won a combined Eleven Professional League Championships: The Washington Redskins have won five, D.C. United has won four and The Washington Wizards (then The Washington Bullets) and Washington Capitals have each won a single championship. Other professional and semi-professional teams in Washington include: The Washington Kastles (World TeamTennis), The Washington D.C. Slayers (USA Rugby League), The Baltimore Washington Eagles (U.S. Australian Football League), The D.C. Divas (Independent Women’s Football League) and The Potomac Athletic Club RFC (Rugby Super League). The William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park hosts The Citi Open. Washington is also home to two major annual marathon races: The Marine Corps Marathon, which is held every autumn and The Rock ‘n’ Roll USA Marathon held in the spring. The Marine Corps Marathon began in 1976 and is sometimes called “The People’s Marathon” because it is the largest marathon that does not offer prize money to participants.

The District’s Four NCAA Division I Teams: American Eagles, George Washington Colonials, Georgetown Hoyas and Howard Bison & Lady Bison, have a broad following. The Georgetown Hoyas Men’s Basketball Team is the most notable and also plays at The Capital One Arena. From 2008 to 2012, The District hosted an annual College Football Bowl Game at RFK Stadium, called The Military Bowl. The D.C. Area is also home to One Regional Sports Television Network known as Comcast SportsNet (CSN), based in Bethesda, Maryland.

Washington DC City History

Washington, D.C. was named in honor of Former U.S. President George Washington. The city’s current mayor is Mayor Muriel Bowser. The city’s federal district has an area measurement of 68.34 sq mi (177.0 km2). The city’s land has an area measurement of 61.05 sq mi (158.1 km2). The city’s water has an area measurement of 7.29 sq mi (18.9 km2). The city’s highest elevation is at 409 ft (125 m). The city’s lowest elevation is at 0 ft (0 m). The city’s population is estimated at 702,445 residents. The city’s density is at 11,367/sq mi (4,389/km2). The city’s metro is at 6,131,977 (6th, U.S.). The city’s CSA is at 9,665,892 (4th, U.S.). The city’s demonym is Washingtonian. The city’s time-zone is UTC−5 (EST) and UTC−4 (EDT) during the summer. The city’s major airports are Washington Dulles, Washington National and Baltimore–Washington International.

Washington D.C. is a prominent center for national and international media. The Washington Post, founded in 1877, is the oldest and most-read local daily newspaper in Washington. “The Post”, as it is popularly called, is well known as the newspaper that exposed The Watergate scandal. It had the sixth-highest readership of all news dailies in the country in 2011. The Washington Post Company also publishes a daily free commuter newspaper called The Express, which summarizes events, sports and entertainment as well as The Spanish-Language Paper El Tiempo Latino. Another popular local daily is The Washington Times, The city’s second general interest broadsheet and also an influential paper in conservative political circles. The alternative weekly Washington City Paper also has a substantial readership in The Washington Area.

Washington DC and Watergate

The Watergate complex was the site of The Watergate Scandal, which led to President Nixon’s resignation. Some community and specialty papers focus on neighborhood and cultural issues including the weekly Washington Blade and Metro Weekly, which focuses on LGBT issues, The Washington Informer and The Washington Afro American, which highlight topics of interest to the black community and neighborhood newspapers published by The Current Newspapers. Congressional Quarterly, The Hill, Politico & Roll Call Newspapers focus exclusively on issues related to Congress and The Federal Government. Other publications based in Washington include The National Geographic Magazine and Political Publications such as The Washington Examiner, The New Republic & Washington Monthly.

Washington DC TV Market

The Washington Metropolitan Area is the ninth-largest television media market in the nation, with two million homes, approximately 2% of the country’s population. Several media companies and cable television channels have their headquarters in the area including C-SPAN, Black Entertainment Television (BET), Radio One, The National Geographic Channel, Smithsonian Networks, National Public Radio (NPR), Travel Channel (in Chevy Chase, Maryland), Discovery Communications (in Silver Spring, Maryland) and The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) (in Arlington, Virginia). The headquarters of Voice oO America, The U.S. Government’s International News Service, is near the Capitol in Southwest Washington. Washington has two local NPR affiliates, WAMU & WETA.

Washington DC Championships

Washington teams are widely known as some of the least successful in recent American sports, as prior to 2018, no Big Four Team (The NFL’s Washington Redskins, The NBA’s Washington Wizards, MLB’s Washington Nationals and The NHL’s Washington Capitals) had reached its sport’s conference championship round since The Capitals advanced in The 1998 Stanley Cup playoffs and no team had won a league championship since The Redskins defeated The Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVI in 1992. However, in 2018, those streaks were broken when The Washington Capitals defeated The Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 of The 2018 Stanley Cup Finals. These teams are also known for having spectacular regular seasons followed by demoralizing playoff losses. The area is also home to two regional sports television networks, NBC Sports Washington, which is based in Bethesda, Maryland and Mid-Atlantic Sports Network.

Popular Washington DC Sports Personalities

Popular sports personalities in The Washington Metropolitan Area include Washington Redskins’ Quarterback Joe Theismann, Maryland Terrapins Former Coach Gary Williams, Washington Capitals’ Former Team Captain Rod Langway, D.C. United Goalkeeper David Ousted, Washington Wizards’ Former Center/Forward Elvin Hayes & Georgetown Hoyas Men’s Basketball Alumni Allen Iverson.

Washington DC And The XFL

Despite The Washington Metropolitan Area not having much success in the past when it comes to their sports teams, The XFL could just change that and the team that will be representing The Washington Metropolitan Area could just end up being the champions. Whichever team ends up representing The Washington Metropolitan Area in The XFL will definitely be a team to look out for as even though teams that represented the city in the past haven’t had much success, the city does have a rich history in sports and this could very much play in their favor especially knowing the drive and the valor sports team coming out of The Washington Metropolitan Area have. Stay tuned to XFL News Hub for more details on the teams of the XFL.

Other XFL Cities


Unleash the Action: Sign up for XFL Insider and Fuel Your Passion for Football!


Mark Perry, a devoted sports journalist and founder of XFL News Hub, has been a key figure in XFL coverage since its 2018 revival. Launching XFL News Hub soon after the league's return announcement, Mark has established the platform as a primary source for comprehensive XFL updates. Renowned for his in-depth knowledge and commitment to sports journalism, Mark actively engages the XFL community, welcoming interactions at [email protected].

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

XFL Kickoff

[ycd_countdown id=16876]

XFL News Alerts

USFL and XFL Merger: A Deep Dive into the Historic Collaboration

Latest Podcast

Subscribe XFL Podcast

More in DC Defenders

XFL News Hub