FedExField is an American Football stadium located in Prince George’s County, Maryland. It is located in the small Washington D.C. suburb of Summerfield, and has a Landover postal address.
Although located just within the State of Maryland, the stadium is just 5 miles east of Washington D.C. and is home of the National Football League (NFL) team the Washington Commanders.
The Commanders were briefly known as the Washington Football Team, between 2020 and 2022, having previously been known as the Washington Redskins between 1937 and 2020.
The stadium replaced the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, which was located two miles east of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington D.C. as the home of D.C’s NFL franchise.
Construction on the project began in March 1996 with the breaking of the ground, and work was completed just eighteen months later in September 1997. FedExField cost $250.5 million to build, which in 2021 dollars is approximately $423 million.
How Many Seats Are In FedExField?
The capacity of FedExField has fluctuated quite wildly over the years, considering that it has only been around for just over two decades. The stadium opened with a capacity of 80,116 seats, but it didn’t remain that way for long.
At the turn of the millennium another 5,000 seats were added, bringing the total capacity of the stadium up to 85,407. Further extensions over the following decade eventually brought the stadium’s number of seats up to 91,704 by 2010.
Indeed, between 2004 and 2010, FedExField was the largest stadium in the NFL.
FedExField is in the rare position for a relatively modern stadium of scaling back capacity in the years since.
The number of seats was reduced to around 80,000 in 2011, and the official listed capacity for NFL games as of January 2022, just over 24 years after the stadium opened, is down to 67,617. That’s about 75% of capacity at its height.
Directions- How To Get To FedExField
By Public Transportation
There’s no other way to put it- FedExField is not the most conveniently located stadium with regards to public transport options. The stadium finds itself located in the middle of a D.C. suburb, and a fairly disconnected one at that.
If you’re traveling from D.C. itself, the best option is to take the metro to the Morgan Boulevard stop. This stop is one mile’s walk from the stadium, and a trek that many Commanders fans make each week.
If you’re arriving into D.C. at Union Station, take the Red Line to Metro Center and then change to the Blue Line, which will take you all the way out to Morgan Boulevard.
By Car
In an effort to improve the game day congestion issues that have long dogged the FedExField, spectators arriving by car must now head directly to the lot they have purchased parking for.
Each lot has designated access roads that drivers must use to enter the stadium area. For more information, click here.
The stadium is well signposted. General directions are as follows:
If arriving from the north via I-495/95, take Exit 15B (Central Avenue), turn right on Garrett A. Morgan Boulevard, and continue on to the stadium.
If arriving from the south via I-495/95, take Exit 17B (Landover Road), turn left on Brightseat Road (becomes Redskins Road), and follow to the stadium.
If arriving from the west via Highway 50, take I-495/I-95 South to Exit 17B (Landover Road), turn left on Brightseat Road (which becomes Redskins Road), and follow the road down to the stadium.
If traveling from D.C., take East Capitol Street (which becomes Central Avenue) into Maryland, turn left on Garrett A. Morgan Boulevard, and continue onwards to the stadium.
Where To Park Near FedExField
There are several official parking lots located around the stadium, with thousands of spaces spread across eighteen different lots that are coded by color and alphabetical letter.
For example, you could park in Green Lot F. Parking rates vary, but you can expect to pay around $55 for a permit for one standard-sized vehicle in the RedZone Lot.
A space in the Green Lot will set you back around $60, you’ll pay $5 extra for a space in the Blue Lot, whilst a permit for RV parking will cost you $100.
Tailgating is intended to take place in the stadium’s RedZone, as the RedZone lot opens an hour earlier than the other lots and offers extra-wide parking spaces to give you room for your tailgate.
Disabled parking is available for spectators holding an orange, purple, or green parking pass who also hold a valid disabled parking permit. Parking attendants will be on hand to direct disabled spectators to these designated disabled parking areas.
If arriving on game day without pre-booked parking, unofficial parking is available at several lots north of the stadium around Brightseat Road.
This is also where you’ll find the Gray Lot, which is accessible pay on-site parking operated by the Washington Commanders.
FedExField Frequently Asked Questions
Why Is It Called FedExField?
FedExField was originally called Jack Kent Cooke Stadium, in honor of the then Washington Redskins’ recently deceased owner. Not long after the stadium move, however, the team was sold to Daniel Snyder.
Snyder agreed a deal worth a reported yearly average of $7.6 million with FedEx for the stadium’s naming rights in November 1999, and the stadium has been called the FedExField ever since.
Is FedEx Field Built On Top Of A Native American Burial Ground?
A string of bad luck in the stadium’s early years, including previous owner Jack Cooke’s death before the stadium was even opened, led to the beginning of a rumor that the stadium had been built on a Native American Burial burial ground and was thus cursed.
It was a particularly apt? curse’ given the team’s name at the time, deemed to be offensive to Native Americans and since changed.
There is no evidence for this rumor, but there’s no doubt the (now) Washington Commanders’ fortunes have struggled since
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