DC United, city agree on stadium

DC United and city officials signed an agreement Thursday that would keep the Major League Soccer franchise in the District of Columbia with a new, $300 million soccer-only stadium.

The city and the team would split the cost of the stadium, which is tentatively scheduled to open in 2016 in an industrial section of southwest Washington known as Buzzard Point.

DC United, which has played in aging RFK Stadium since MLS’ launch in 1996, had considered relocating to suburban Maryland, Virginia or even Baltimore. But co-owner Jason Levien said Thursday that he’s been negotiating to keep the team in the district since he bought the club last year.

The design for the new stadium has not been finalized, but officials said Thursday it would seat 20,000 to 25,000 people. The city will pay $150 million to acquire the land for the stadium and improve infrastructure, raising money for the deal through a complicated series of land swaps, while the team will spend $150 million to build the structure. Read more