Historic teams

Washington has had several professional soccer teams over the years. The Washington Whips played in the United Soccer Association between 1967 and 1968, playing their games at RFK Stadium, when it was known as D.C. Stadium. The Washington Darts played in the American Soccer League from 1976 to 1969 and then in the North American Soccer League (NASL) in 1970 and 1971. The Washington Diplomats played in the NASL from 1974 to 1981, and had a record attendance of 53,351 in a match against the New York Cosmos in 1980.^[9] Team America played in the NASL for one season in 1983, playing their home games at RFK Stadium.

Washington also has a history of women's professional soccer. The Washington Freedom were a professional women's team playing in the Washington area from 2001 until 2011. The team first played in the now-defunct Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) between 2001 and 2003. The Freedom played at RFK for the three years of the league's existence and won the league championship in 2003, the WUSA's final year. Following the WUSA's demise, the team continued as an associate member of the W-League, playing their home games at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Germantown. In 2009, the team joined the Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) league. In 2011, the franchise relocated to Boca Raton, Florida.

Current teams

D.C. United match at Audi Field in 2019

D.C. United trophy collection

Washington is home to an original Major League Soccer (MLS) club, D.C. United, which began play at RFK Stadium in 1996. One of the most successful MLS teams (with twelve major trophies, won domestically and at an international level), United has won four MLS Cups, including three of the first four played. They also won the U.S. Open Cup in their first year, in 2008, and again in 2013. In addition, United have captured four MLS Supporters Shields, the most out of any MLS club in the region. D.C. United's 1997 MLS Cup victory at RFK Stadium was the only time a Washington team has won a championship within the District.^[10] United is also the first American team to win the continental CONCACAF Champions Cup, which they won in 1998. United moved to their new home, Audi Field, in 2018.

The Washington Spirit began play as a women's professional soccer team in 2011 under the name D.C. United Women. In December 2012, the franchise rebranded as the Washington Spirit. During its early years, the team played at the Maryland SoccerPlex, but in 2019 it moved select games to Audi Field. In 2020, the Spirit began transitioning away from the SoccerPlex, playing four home games at each of three venues: the SoccerPlex, Audi Field, and Segra Field in Leesburg, Virginia. Then in 2021, the team left the SoccerPlex entirely, splitting home games between Audi Field and Segra Field. Beginning in 2023, the team moved all of its home games to Audi Field. The team is one of the eight charter members of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), a professional league launched by the United States Soccer Federation in 2013. The Spirit won the 2021 NWSL Championship.

Since 2019, the area has been represented in the second tier of U.S. men's soccer, the USL Championship, by Loudoun United FC, owned and operated by D.C. United as their official reserve side. Loudoun United started play at Audi Field, moving to their permanent home of Segra Field during their first season.

Other information

RFK Stadium has hosted two more MLS Cup championships. In 2000, the Kansas City Wizards (now known as Sporting Kansas City) won their first championship with a 1–0 win over the Chicago Fire. In the 2007 MLS Cup, the Houston Dynamo defeated the New England Revolution 2–1. RFK Memorial Stadium also served as a soccer venue in the 1994 FIFA World Cup and the 1996 Summer Olympics. FedExField has also hosted several prominent soccer games, including six matches in the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup. In July 2011, a match between Manchester United and Barcelona at FedExField drew a crowd of 81,807, a record soccer attendance for the D.C. metropolitan area.^[11]

DC United has hosted three MLS All-Star Games. It hosted the 2002 and 2004 games at RFK Stadium. The team hosted the 2023 MLS All-Star Game at Audi Field on July 19, 2023.

Historic teams

In the early years of professional football, teams were focused mostly in the northeast of the US, with Philadelphia typically being the southern end of the highest professional circuit. However, Washington, D.C. had a very successful professional football team in the city during the early 1900s. The Washington Vigilants dominated the mid-Atlantic professional football landscape. From 1907 until 1914, they were an independent football team and were not affiliated with any league. During their existence, they played against several semi-professional and amateur football teams from Washington, D.C., including the Washington Potomacs, Washington Engineers, and Washington All-Stars. In the 1915 season, they were affiliated with the Ohio League, though the only team from that league they played against were the Youngstown Patricians. The team folded after the 1915 season.

The first professional football team in Washington, D.C. to compete in a country-wide football league were the Washington Senators. The team was founded in 1921, and played the 1921 season in the American Professional Football Association (APFA), which was renamed the National Football League (NFL) the next year. Following that one season, the team left the APFA and continued playing as an independent professional football team until 1941, when they folded. The team was also known as the Washington Pros and Washington Presidents during its existence. They practiced and played their home games at American League Park.

Washington Redskins / Commanders

Sammy Baugh was among the NFL's early pioneers and among football's greatest ever players.

The NFL's Washington Commanders (known as the Washington Redskins until 2020) have played professional football in the Washington, D.C. area since 1937, when the team moved from Boston, where it was founded in 1932. Believing the team would find greater financial success in the nation's capital, the team's owner, George Preston Marshall moved the team to Washington, where they played at Griffith Stadium until 1960. Upon arriving in Washington, the team found immediate success, winning the 1937 NFL Championship over the Chicago Bears, with a final score of 28-21. The Redskins were led by Sammy Baugh, who is widely considered to be one of the best and most important football players in the early years of the NFL. Baugh played multiple positions, including quarterback, defensive back, and punter. He was the first quarterback to popularize the forward pass, and threw the ball down field with greater success than any quarterback before. The Redskins lost the 1940 NFL Championship game 73-0 to the Bears, in what remains the most lopsided final score in NFL history. It is believed that the team performed so poorly in that game as a form of protest against the team's ownership. Sammy Baugh led the Redskins to their second championship in 1942 as well, defeating the Bears 14-6 in the championship game, which was played at Griffith Stadium in Washington. The Redskins lost the 1943 NFL Championship 41-21 to the Chicago Bears and lost the 1945 NFL Championship by a score of 15-14 to the Cleveland Rams.

From that final NFL Championship game appearance in 1945 to the 1970s, the Redskins were perennially among the worst teams in the league, even when Sonny Jurgenson took over as the team's quarterback in the 1960s. Jurgenson was widely considered to be among the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history during his time. Legendary NFL coach Vince Lombardi coached the Redskins for one season in 1969, before dying of cancer. That was the first season the Redskins finished with a winning record since 1955. George Allen coached the team to Super Bowl VII in 1972, where they lost to the undefeated Miami Dolphins, 14-7.

Joe Gibbs coached Washington to four Super Bowl appearances and three victories in a span of nine years from 1982 to 1991. He is the only NFL head coach to win Super Bowls with three different quarterbacks.

In 1981, the team's owner Jack Kent Cooke hired Joe Gibbs to be the new head coach. Gibbs led the Redskins to four Super Bowl appearances and three victories. The team won Super Bowl XVII in 1982, lost Super Bowl XVIII in 1983, won Super Bowl XXII in 1987, and won Super Bowl XXVI in 1991.^[12] Gibbs is considered to be among the greatest coaches in the history of professional football, and is the only coach to win Super Bowls with three different starting quarterbacks. The 1982 Super Bowl was won with Joe Theismann, the 1987 Super Bowl was won with Doug Williams—who became the first Black quarterback to start in and win a Super Bowl—and the 1991 Super Bowl was won with Mark Rypien as quarterback.

The success of the Redskins in the 1980s and early 1990s vaulted the team to become one of the most important and widely supported sports franchises in the country. In the D.C. area, the Redskins were perhaps the most important cultural entity, as stores would close and people would return to their homes or go to bars to watch Redskins games. The team's valuation increased to being the second highest valued sports team in the world by the time Daniel Snyder purchased the team in 1999.

In 1997, the team moved to a new stadium in Landover, Maryland, an eastern suburb of Washington.^[13] This marked the first time the team played its home games outside the District of Columbia since moving there in 1937. From 1961 through 1997, the team played their home games at RFK Stadium, which had become among the country's most iconic sports and football venues.

In the years since Gibbs' retirement in 1993, the team's move to FedExField in Landover, and Snyder's purchase of the team, the glory years have faded and the team's success has dried up. Although Gibbs returned to coach the team from 2004 to 2007, the success of his earlier stint as head coach was not re-lived.

In 2020, following decades of controversy regarding the team's Native American name, and decisions by several of the team's largest sponsors to stop financing the team until they changed their name, the organization announced that they were dropping the name Redskins, and would pick up the temporary name Washington Football Team until a new name could be determined. After a two-year process, the team announced in 2022 that their permanent name moving forward would be the Washington Commanders.

In 2023, Daniel Snyder, whose ownership of the team had been mired in controversy amid a lack of on-field success since buying it in 1999, sold the team to an investment group led by Josh Harris, owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils, for $6.05 billion.^[14] In addition to Harris, the group has 20 limited partners worth a combined $100 billion, including Danaher founder and art collector Mitchell Rales, Basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson, 76ers and Devils co-owner David Blitzer, venture capitalist and Washington Kastles owner Mark Ein, Maverick Capital founder Lee Ainslie, Blue Owl Capital founders Marc Lipschultz and Doug Ostrover, financier Alejandro Santo Domingo and his family, ProShares founder Michael Sapir, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, and Cambridge Information Group CEO Andy Snyder.^[15][16] The deal was the highest price ever paid for a sports team.^[17]

Other teams

Two other professional football leagues to have had teams in Washington include the indoor Arena Football League (AFL) and XFL, which merged with the USFL to form the United Football League (UFL).

The Washington Commandos competed in the Arena League in 1987, 1989, and 1990. In 1987 and 1989, the team played their home games at the Capital Centre in the suburb of Landover, Maryland. In 1989, the team was known as the Maryland Commandos. In 1990, they played their home games at the Patriot Center in Fairfax, Virginia, and returned to being called the Washington Commandos.

The Washington Valor competed in the AFL from 2017 to 2019. As an indoor football league that competes on a smaller playing surface than traditional football, the team played their home games in Capital One Arena. Although the team finished with an overall regular season record of 12-26 and an overall postseason record of 2-3, they won ArenaBowl XXXI in 2018 by a score of 69-55 against the Baltimore Brigade. Following the 2019 season, the AFL was suspended indefinitely, and the Valor have not played since.

The DC Defenders competed in the XFL from 2020 until 2023. They play their home games at Audi Field. In the 2023 season, the Defenders finished with a league-best record of 9-1 in the regular season and were the heavy favorites going into the playoffs. However, they lost the 2023 XFL Championship Game to the Arlington Renegades, 35-26. Following the 2023 XFL and USFL merger, the Defenders became part of the UFL, where they currently compete.

The D.C. Divas of the Women's Football Alliance are a women's tackle football team based in the Washington area. They've competed since 2000, and won the championship in 2006, 2015, and 2016.

Other information

The headquarters of the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), which is the labor union representing the players of the NFL, is located in the Upshaw Place building on 20th Street in Northwest Washington. The 1941 NFL Draft was held at the Willard Hotel in Washington.

Historic teams

Washington's first professional baseball team was the Washington Olympics, which played in Washington, D.C. in 1871 and 1872. A new team known as the Washington Senators played in the American Association in 1891, after which it played in the National League (NL) for the duration of its existence. After this Senators franchise folded in 1899, another Washington Senators team was founded in 1901 and played in the American League (AL). This franchise was officially called the Washington Nationals from 1905 to 1955, but was commonly called the "Senators" during its time in Washington. The team played from 1911 onwards at Griffith Stadium in Northwest Washington. The Senators won the 1924 World Series in seven games against the New York Giants, with game seven at Griffith Stadium ending in the bottom of the 12th inning. The team also won the 1925 and 1933 AL Pennants. This team left for Minnesota in 1960 and became the Minnesota Twins. The very next season, an expansion Washington Senators franchise was founded in the city, and played in Washington from 1961 to 1971. Following the 1971 season, the team moved to Dallas and became the Texas Rangers.

The ceremonial first pitch, which is now common across baseball, began in Washington in 1910 when President William Howard Taft threw out the first pitch at the Senators' Opening Day game.

Several Negro league baseball teams played in Washington including the Black Senators and the Elite Giants. The longest lasting was the Homestead Grays, which played some home games in Washington from 1940 to 1950. Though officially based in the Pittsburgh area, the Grays played a number of home games at their "home away from home", Griffith Stadium in Washington, and were often referred to as the Washington Grays. The Grays won the Negro League World Series in 1943, 1944, and 1948.

Current team

Nationals Park is the current home of the Washington Nationals.

Washington was without a professional baseball team for over three decades until Major League Baseball relocated the Montreal Expos to the city for the 2005 season, becoming the Washington Nationals. In the interim, the Baltimore Orioles served as Washington's home team. Orioles ownership marketed the team heavily to Washington baseball fans, even removing "Baltimore" from the team's uniform (however, since the return of baseball to the D.C. area, "Baltimore" is now on the uniform again). The Orioles' reliance on the Washington market became a hindrance to Washington's efforts to gain their own baseball team as Orioles ownership lobbied Major League Baseball to keep a professional team out of Washington. Eventually, baseball's owners, burdened with a poorly performing Montreal franchise, were convinced to move the team to Washington with the promise of a brand new stadium fully financed by the D.C. government. Orioles' owner Peter Angelos cast the lone dissenting vote in the 28–1 decision. After spending their first three seasons at RFK Stadium, the Nationals began playing at Nationals Park in the Navy Yard neighborhood in 2008. The Nationals won their first-ever World Series pennant in 2019, beating the Houston Astros in seven games.

Other information

Washington, D.C. has hosted five Major League Baseball All-Star Games. The Washington Senators hosted the 1937 and 1956 All-Star Games at Griffith Stadium. The 1962 and 1969 Games were hosted by the next Washington Senators franchise and were played at RFK Stadium. The 2018 All-Star Game was hosted by the Nationals at Nationals Park.

Historic teams

Washington's first professional basketball team was the Washington Capitols, which played in the inaugural season of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) (the precursor to the National Basketball Association (NBA)). The team played their home games at Uline Arena. In 1946, their first year, the Capitols had a .817 winning percentage, and had a 17-game winning streak at one point during the season. The team began the 1948–49 season with a 15-game winning streak.^[18] The Capitols continued playing in the BAA until halting operations on January 9, 1951.

There were no professional basketball teams in Washington until the Oakland Oaks moved to Washington in 1969 and formed the Washington Caps. The Caps played as part of the American Basketball Association (ABA). They played their home games in Uline Arena, which was then known as the Washington Coliseum. The team only played two seasons in Washington, before moving to Norfolk, Virginia in 1970 to become the Virginia Squires.

Current teams

On December 2, 1973, the NBA's Baltimore Bullets moved to the Washington area and played their first home game at the newly built Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland. The team changed their name to the Capital Bullets during their first year in the Washington area. Their second year, they changed their city designation and became the Washington Bullets. Despite the name change, the team continued to play many of their home games in Baltimore at the Baltimore Civic Center. The Bullets went to the NBA Finals in 1975, where they were swept in four games by the Golden State Warriors.

The Bullets' next appearance in the NBA Finals happened in 1978, when they beat the heavily favored Seattle SuperSonics in seven games. To date, this is the franchise's only league title. The two teams met again in the 1979 NBA Finals, with the Sonics winning 4 games to 1.

The NBA's Washington Wizards play at Capital One Arena.

In 1995, team owner Abe Pollin announced the Bullets would change their name out of sensitivity to the high rate of gun violence in Washington, D.C. Following a fan vote, the team became known as the Washington Wizards on May 15, 1997. Later that year, the Wizards moved to D.C. to play in the newly constructed MCI Center, now known as Capital One Arena. This new arena was constructed by Pollin. Since the 1980s, the team has suffered from many losing seasons, and did not win a playoff series for 23 years until 2005. They followed up this season by making the playoffs the next four years under the leadership of star point guard, Gilbert Arenas.

Following the departure of star players like Arenas, Antawn Jamison, and Caron Butler, the Wizards finished with the 5th worst record in the 2009-10 NBA season. The team subsequently won the 2010 Draft Lottery and selected Kentucky point guard John Wall with the first pick, whom new owner Ted Leonsis and team president Ernie Grunfeld would build the team around in the years to come. Despite this, success remained mediocre, and attendance has flat-lined as the team continues to struggle perennially.

Women's basketball has also played an important part in Washington's basketball history. In 1998, soon after the opening of the new MCI Center, an expansion team in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), the Washington Mystics, began playing their home games there. Despite having only two winning seasons and a mere four playoff wins in their early years, the Mystics led the league in attendance from 1998 through 2000 and again from 2002 through 2004. The team hung six banners in their home arena, touting themselves as "Attendance Champions". These banners were frequently criticized and in 2010 the new owner of the team and arena, Ted Leonsis, ordered them removed.^[19]

The Mystics moved to the newly constructed Entertainment and Sports Arena (ESA) in Southeast D.C. in 2019. The arena hosts the Wizards' practice facility as well. Their first season in the new arena saw the Mystics claim their first WNBA title, with the team's star player, Elena Delle Donne, being named season MVP on the strength of the first 50–40–90 season in league history, and Emma Meesseman earning Finals MVP honors.

The 2018–19 season marked the debut of the Capital City Go-Go, a team owned by the Wizards that plays in the NBA's official minor league, the NBA G League. The Go-Go play at ESA.

Other information

Washington, D.C. hosted the NBA All-Star Game once at the MCI Center (now Capital One Arena) in 2001. The same arena has hosted two WNBA All-Star Games, one in 2002 and another in 2007.

Historic teams

From 1939 through 1942, the Washington Eagles were a minor league hockey team playing in the Eastern Hockey League, which was a minor league made up of teams focused mostly on the eastern United States. They won the league championship in 1940-41. The next season, the team competed for fans with the newly established Washington Lions of the American Hockey League, which was another minor league. Ultimately, the Lions succeeded in getting a larger fanbase than the Eagles, leading the Eagles to stop operations in 1942. The Lions played initially in Washington from 1941 to 1943 and then again from 1947 to 1949. They played their homes games at Uline Ice Arena in Northeast D.C. In 1949, the team moved to Cincinnati and became the Cincinnati Mohawks. The team returned to Washington in 1951, again with the name Washington Lions. This time, however, the team was a part of the Eastern Hockey League. In an effort to rebrand and increase its fanbase, the team changed its name in 1957 to the Washington Presidents. Despite its attempt to rebrand, the team was financially unstable and ended up folding in 1960.

The NHL's Washington Capitals play their homes games at Capital One Arena.

Current team

Following many years without professional ice hockey in Washington, businessman and sports team owner Abe Pollin decided to purchase an expansion team in the National Hockey League (NHL) for Washington, D.C. The new hockey team for Washington was created as part of the NHL's 1974 expansion. Pollin offered fans the opportunity to send in suggestions for the team's new name. Ultimately, he chose to call the new hockey team the Washington Capitals, often shortened to Caps.

Their first season, the Capitals only won eight games, which earned them an NHL-record low .131 winning percentage. The team found greater success through the 1980s and 1990s. From the 1982-83 season through the 1995-96 season, the Caps made the playoffs every year and won the division in 1988-89.

After spending their first 23 seasons playing in the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland, the Caps moved into D.C. to play in the newly constructed MCI Center (now known as Capital One Arena) located in Chinatown in 1997. A competitive high point for the team came in their first season in the new arena, when they defeated the Buffalo Sabres in the Eastern Conference Finals, earning a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals, where they were swept in four games by the Detroit Red Wings. In 1999, the team was purchased by local businessman Ted Leonsis.

Alexander Ovechkin celebrating the Capitals' 2018 Stanley Cup championship.

For many years after the Cup Finals appearance, the team struggled mightily on the ice. In 2004, the Capitals drafted Russian winger Alexander Ovechkin with the first overall draft pick. The team made the playoffs in 2007-08, which was the beginning of a long stretch during which the team was consistently among the best in the league. Despite the many regular season successes during this time, including seven division titles and three Presidents' Trophy wins between 2007 and 2017, the team struggled to achieve playoff success, and failed to make it past the second round.

This playoff disappointment ended when Evgeny Kuznetsov lifted the Capitals over the rival Pittsburgh Penguins in overtime of Game 6 in the second round of the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 20 years. Led by their captain Alexander Ovechkin, the Capitals went on to defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning in seven games to claim the title as 2017–18 Eastern Conference champions, the second title in franchise history. On June 7, 2018, the Capitals defeated the Vegas Golden Knights in five games to win their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Among the most important members of this team were Ovechkin, Kuznetsov, goalie Braden Holtby, defensman John Carlson, and center Nicklas Backstrom. The team was coached by Barry Trotz.

In addition to their Stanley Cup championship and two Eastern Conference championships, the Capitals have won three Presidents' Trophies for having the best regular season record and have claimed 13 division titles. The team won four straight division championships as members of the Southeast Division between the 2007 and 2010 seasons, and five straight in the current Metropolitan Division, between 2015 and 2020. Four Capitals players have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame: Mike Gartner, Rod Langway, Larry Murphy, and Scott Stevens. Ovechkin is widely considered to be among the greatest NHL players in history and is currently chasing Wayne Gretzky's record for most career NHL goals.

Other information

The Capitals hosted the 1982 NHL All-Star Game at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland.