White House says Washington Commanders stadium bearing Trump’s name would be ‘beautiful’
A general overview of the Northwest Stadium before the game between the Chicago Bears and the Washington Commanders.
By Samantha Waldenberg, CNN
(CNN) — The White House said Sunday it would be “beautiful” if the Washington Commanders NFL team named their planned stadium in the nation’s capital after President Donald Trump.
That statement comes after ESPN reported that there have been backchannel talks between the White House and the Washington Commanders ownership group in which Trump expressed interest in having the stadium named after him.
“That would surely be a beautiful name, as it was President Trump who made the rebuilding of the new stadium possible,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN in a statement.
The Washington Commanders did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Commanders have played at Northwest Stadium, formerly known as FedEx Field, in Landover, Maryland, since 1997. The franchise previously played Washington, DC, at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, commonly known as RFK Stadium, from 1961 until 1996.
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser announced an agreement to bring the Commanders back to Washington at the site of the old RFK Stadium in April. The DC Council approved that deal in September, months after Trump threatened to thwart that effort if the team did not change its name back to the “Redskins.” The team dropped the “Redskins” name in 2020 after decades of criticism from Native American groups that said it was an ethnic slur and a derogatory reference to skin color.
Josh Harris, who leads the Commanders’ ownership group, has said the team is targeting a 2030 opening date for the stadium.
Bowser’s office declined to comment on the stadium potentially being named after Trump.
The president is expected to attend the Commanders game against the Detroit Lions at Northwest Stadium on Sunday.
Trump’s attendance at sporting events has been a common theme of his second term in office. So far this year, he has attended an Ultimate Fighting Championship event, the annual Army-Navy college football game, the Ryder Cup golf tournament and the US Open men’s tennis final at Arther Ashe Stadium.
CNN’s Kit Maher contributed to this report.
This story was updated to include that DC Mayor Muriel Bowser’s office declined to comment.
The-CNN-Wire
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