Capital One Arena

Capital One Arena
Former names	MCI Center (1997–2006); Verizon Center (2006–2017)
Address	601 F Street NW
Location	Washington, D.C.
Coordinates	38°53′53″N 77°1′15″W / 38.89806°N 77.02083°WCoordinates: 38°53′53″N 77°1′15″W / 38.89806°N 77.02083°W
Public transit	Washington Metro ; at Gallery Place
Owner	Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Operator	Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Capacity	Basketball:; 20,674 (1997–2002); 20,173 (2002–2010); 20,278 (2010–2011); 20,282 (2011–2012); 20,308 (2012–2013); 20,356 (2013–present); Ice hockey:; 19,740 (1997–1999); 18,672 (1999–2002); 18,277 (2002–2010); 18,398 (2010–2011); 18,506 (2011–present)
Field size	1,020,000 square feet (95,000 m2)
Construction
Broke ground	October 18, 1995
Opened	December 2, 1997
Construction cost	US$260 million; ($396 million in 2017 dollars)
Architect	Ellerbe Becket; Devrouax & Purnell; KCF-SHG Architects
Project manager	Seagull Bay Sports, LLC.
Structural engineer	Delon Hampton & Associates
Services engineer	John J. Christie Associates
General contractor	Clark/Smoot
Tenants
	Washington Wizards (NBA) (1997–present); Washington Capitals (NHL) (1997–present); Georgetown Hoyas (NCAA) (1997–present); Washington Mystics (WNBA) (1998–2018); Washington Power (NLL) (2001–2002); Washington Valor (AFL) (2017–present)

Capital One Arena is an indoor arena in Washington, D.C. Owned by Monumental Sports & Entertainment, it is the home arena of the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League, the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association, the Georgetown University men's basketball team, and the Washington Valor of the Arena Football League. It was also home to the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association from 1998 to 2018, but that team will move to the new St. Elizabeths East Arena in southeast Washington for 2019 and beyond.

Located in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C., the Capital One Arena sits atop the Gallery Place rapid transit station of the Washington Metro. The arena has been largely considered to be a commercial success and is regarded as one of the driving catalysts of the revitalization of Washington, D.C.'s Chinatown neighborhood.^[8]

History[edit]

The arena was built in the mid-1990s solely with private financing by Abe Pollin, and is situated on top of land leased from the District of Columbia. It opened on December 2, 1997, as the MCI Center. Nearly a decade later, in January 2006, Verizon Communications purchased MCI and the arena's name was changed accordingly to Verizon Center.^[8] The following year, in 2007, the "first true indoor high-definition LED scoreboard" was installed in the arena.^[9]^[10]

On June 10, 2010, following Pollin's death in November 2009, the Pollin family sold the arena, along with the Washington Wizards and the Washington-Baltimore area Ticketmaster franchise, to Ted Leonsis, who already owned the arena's other tenant, the Washington Capitals. Leonsis subsequently formed a new management company, Monumental Sports & Entertainment.^[11]

A report emerged in May 2015 that Verizon would not renew its naming rights to the Verizon Center when its agreement with Monumental was to end in 2018.^[12]^[13] In the same week, it was announced that Etihad Airways signed a deal to become the official airline of the arena, sparking speculation that Etihad might be the leading contender to assume naming rights in 2017.^[14] However, on August 9, 2017, it was announced the bank Capital One had purchased the rights, renaming the venue Capital One Arena.^[15]^[16]^[17]

The Washington Valor began play at the arena for their inaugural season in the Arena Football League.^[18] The Mystics will move after the 2018 WNBA season to a new, smaller arena nearing completion in the Congress Heights area of southeast Washington.^[19]

The venue also hosted both the 1998 Stanley Cup Finals and the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals, the latter of which saw the Capitals win the first Stanley Cup championship in team history, and the first major sports championship to Washington D.C. since the 1992 Washington Redskins.

Criticism[edit]

Gentrification[edit]

When the arena opened, there was concern that it would lead to the displacement of Chinese businesses and culture in the area that is the city's Chinatown.^[20] The surrounding area has indeed been dramatically gentrified, and most of the Chinese residents and businesses who lived and operated in the neighborhood when the arena first opened have been displaced because of the spike in real estate prices.^[21] Recent estimates hold that the number of Chinese in the neighborhood is down to around 400 to 500.^[21] The Chinese-owned restaurants and businesses in the Chinatown area are largely gone and there has not been a full-service Chinese grocery in the neighborhood since 2005.^[21]

Ice quality issues[edit]

In December 2007, then-Capitals captain Chris Clark gained a bit of press by stating that he believed the arena had the worst ice in the NHL. "There's a lot of ruts in the ice. It's soft. It's wet half the time. I could see a lot of injuries coming from the ice there. It could cost [players] their jobs... Even guys on other teams say the same thing. When we're facing off, they say, 'How do you guys play on this?'" Capitals owner Ted Leonsis addressed this criticism directly.^[22] The ice quality issue has been persistent both since the opening of the facility and with the Capitals franchise in general.^[23] Since Leonsis' acquisition of the facility, the quality of the ice has gotten better^{[according to whom?]} and number of complaints has noticeably decreased. During playoff games, the arena installs a system to help remove hot air and humidity to maintain the ice conditions during warmer times of the year.^{[citation needed]}

References[edit]

^ Carrera, Katie (December 6, 2012). "Hershey Bears Play AHL Showcase at Verizon Center, Keeping Capitals Fans Entertained for One Night During NHL Lockout". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
^ Heath, Thomas (November 25, 2004). "On Hockey Nights, A Center of Inactivity". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
^ Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Community Development Project. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Verizon Center". AECOM. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
^ Bailey, W. Scott (December 6, 2002). "New S.A. Sports Firm Set to Play Pivotal Pole in Big NBA Projects". San Antonio Business Journal. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
^ "Verizon Center". Delon Hampton & Associates. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
^ "MCI Center". Emporis.com. Retrieved September 29, 2011.
^ ^a ^b "Name Change: MCI Center to be Verizon Center". ESPN. Associated Press. January 7, 2006. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
^ "Verizon Center Shows off "First True Indoor HD LED Scoreboard"". Engadget. September 28, 2007. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
^ Nakamura, David (December 2, 2007). "Verizon Center Marks 10th Anniversary". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
^ https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/10/AR2010061002827.html
^ Hobson, Will. "Verizon still mulling whether to renew naming rights to Verizon Center". Washington Post.
^ "Report: Verizon will not renew arena naming rights". WUSA9.
^ Clabaugh, Jeff. "Monumental Sports & Entertainment teams with international airline in sponsorship deal". Washington Business Journal.
^ "MSE and Capital One Announce New Arena Naming Rights Partnership" (Press release). Washington Wizards. August 9, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
^ "MSE and Capital One Announce New Arena Naming Rights Partnership" (Press release). Washington Capitals. August 9, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
^ Steinberg, Dan (August 9, 2017). "Verizon Center to become Capital One Arena, starting now". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 29, 2017.
^ Ted Leonsis to announce D.C. is getting an Arena Football League team, Scott Allen, The Washington Post, March 10, 2016
^ O'Connell, Jonathan (September 22, 2016). "A sneak peek at the new Wizards practice center, designed for sports and community alike". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
^ Lowman, Stephen (January 28, 2009). "The Shrinking of Chinatown". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 29, 2009.
^ ^a ^b ^c Nakamura, David (July 1, 2011). "Wah Luck House Maintains Culture of Dying D.C. Chinatown". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
^ Leonsis, Ted (December 6, 2007). "Toughness". Ted's Take. Retrieved December 6, 2007.
^ Steinberg, Dan (February 10, 2009). "The Caps and Bad Ice: A History". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 10, 2009.

External links[edit]

Official website

Events and tenants
Preceded by first arena	Home of the Washington Valor 2017 – present	Succeeded by current
Preceded by first arena	Home of the Washington Mystics 1998 – 2018	Succeeded by St. Elizabeths East Arena
Preceded by Capital Centre	Home of the Washington Capitals 1997 – present	Succeeded by current
Preceded by Capital Centre	Home of the Washington Wizards 1997 – present	Succeeded by current
Preceded by Pepsi Center Denver, Colorado	Host of the Frozen Four 2009	Succeeded by Ford Field Detroit, Michigan
Preceded by TD Banknorth Garden	Host of the Survivor Series 2009	Succeeded by American Airlines Arena
Preceded by U.S. Bank Arena	Host of WWE Cyber Sunday 2007	Succeeded by US Airways Center

[1] Carrera, Katie (December 6, 2012). "Hershey Bears Play AHL Showcase at Verizon Center, Keeping Capitals Fans Entertained for One Night During NHL Lockout". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 5, 2013.

[2] Heath, Thomas (November 25, 2004). "On Hockey Nights, A Center of Inactivity". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 11, 2011.

[inflation-US-3] Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Community Development Project. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved January 2, 2018.

[VCEB-4] "Verizon Center". AECOM. Retrieved September 29, 2017.

[5] Bailey, W. Scott (December 6, 2002). "New S.A. Sports Firm Set to Play Pivotal Pole in Big NBA Projects". San Antonio Business Journal. Retrieved February 5, 2013.

[6] "Verizon Center". Delon Hampton & Associates. Retrieved February 5, 2013.

[7] "MCI Center". Emporis.com. Retrieved September 29, 2011.

[espn-8] "Name Change: MCI Center to be Verizon Center". ESPN. Associated Press. January 7, 2006. Retrieved February 5, 2013.

[9] "Verizon Center Shows off "First True Indoor HD LED Scoreboard"". Engadget. September 28, 2007. Retrieved November 11, 2011.

[10] Nakamura, David (December 2, 2007). "Verizon Center Marks 10th Anniversary". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 17, 2014.

[11] ttps://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/10/AR2010061002827.html

[12] Hobson, Will. "Verizon still mulling whether to renew naming rights to Verizon Center". Washington Post.

[13] "Report: Verizon will not renew arena naming rights". WUSA9.

[14] Clabaugh, Jeff. "Monumental Sports & Entertainment teams with international airline in sponsorship deal". Washington Business Journal.

[15] "MSE and Capital One Announce New Arena Naming Rights Partnership" (Press release). Washington Wizards. August 9, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2017.

[16] "MSE and Capital One Announce New Arena Naming Rights Partnership" (Press release). Washington Capitals. August 9, 2017. Retrieved September 29, 2017.

[17] Steinberg, Dan (August 9, 2017). "Verizon Center to become Capital One Arena, starting now". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 29, 2017.

[18] Ted Leonsis to announce D.C. is getting an Arena Football League team, Scott Allen, The Washington Post, March 10, 2016

[19] O'Connell, Jonathan (September 22, 2016). "A sneak peek at the new Wizards practice center, designed for sports and community alike". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 14, 2017.

[wapo20090129-20] Lowman, Stephen (January 28, 2009). "The Shrinking of Chinatown". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 29, 2009.

[wapo20110710-21] Nakamura, David (July 1, 2011). "Wah Luck House Maintains Culture of Dying D.C. Chinatown". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 10, 2011.

[22] Leonsis, Ted (December 6, 2007). "Toughness". Ted's Take. Retrieved December 6, 2007.

[23] Steinberg, Dan (February 10, 2009). "The Caps and Bad Ice: A History". The Washington Post. Retrieved February 10, 2009.

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v t e Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball
Venues	Washington Light Infantry Armory (1906–1907) Convention Hall (1907–1908) Odd Fellows Hall (1908–1911) Arcade Rink (1911–1914, 1927–1928) Ryan Gymnasium (1914–1927) Clendenen Gymnasium (1928–1929) Tech Gymnasium (1929–1940, 1942–1943) Riverside Stadium (1940–1942) Brookland Gymnasium (1945–1946) Uline Arena (1946–1947, 1949–1951) D.C. Armory (1947–1949) McDonough Gymnasium (1951–2009) Capital Centre (1981–1997) Capital One Arena (1997–present)
Rivalries	Connecticut
Culture & lore	History Hoya Saxa Jack the Bulldog There Goes Old Georgetown
People	Head coaches NBA draftees
Seasons	1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19
NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e Washington Capitals
Founded in 1974 Based in Washington, D.C.
Franchise	Team General managers Coaches Players Captains Draft picks (Expansion draft) Seasons Current season
History	Records Award winners Retired numbers
Personnel	Owners Monumental Sports & Entertainment (Ted Leonsis, chairman) General manager Brian MacLellan Head coach Todd Reirden Team captain Alexander Ovechkin Current roster
Arenas	Capital Centre Capital One Arena
Rivalries	New York Rangers Philadelphia Flyers Pittsburgh Penguins
Affiliates	AHL Hershey Bears ECHL South Carolina Stingrays
Media	TV NBCS Mid-Atlantic Radio WFED WJFK Caps Radio 24/7 (TuneIn app)
Culture and lore	Easter Epic Slapshot 2011 NHL Winter Classic 2015 NHL Winter Classic 2018 NHL Stadium Series MedStar Capitals Iceplex

v t e Washington Mystics
Founded in 1998 Based in Washington, D.C.
Franchise	Franchise Most recent season
Arenas	Capital One Arena (1998–2018) St. Elizabeths East Entertainment and Sports Arena (2019–future)
Head coaches	Jim Lewis Cathy Parson Nancy Darsch Darrell Walker Tom Maher Marianne Stanley Michael Adams Richie Adubato Tree Rollins Jessie Kenlaw Julie Plank Trudi Lacey Mike Thibault
Administration	Owners: Washington Sports and Entertainment Monumental Sports and Entertainment Sponsor: Inova Health System General Manager: Melissa McFerrin Judy Holland-Burton Linda Hargrove Angela Taylor Trudi Lacey Mike Thibault
All-Stars	Alana Beard Monique Currie Stacey Dales Elena Delle Donne Stefanie Dolson Lindsey Harding Chamique Holdsclaw Crystal Langhorne Ivory Latta Nikki McCray Emma Meesseman DeLisha Milton-Jones Kristi Toliver
Seasons	1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Playoff appearances	2000 2002 2004 2006 2009 2010 2013 2014 2017 2018
Conference Championships	2018
WNBA Championships	None
Rivals	Chicago Sky Connecticut Sun Detroit Shock Indiana Fever
Media	TV: NBC Sports Washington Radio: WSPZ (Money 1260) Announcers: Frank Hanrahan, Christy Winters Scott

v t e Washington Wizards
Founded in 1961 Formerly the Chicago Packers (1961–1962), the Chicago Zephyrs (1962–1963), the Baltimore Bullets (1963–1973), the Capital Bullets (1973–1974), and the Washington Bullets (1974–1997) Based in Washington, D.C.
Franchise	Franchise Expansion Draft All-time roster Draft history Head coaches Seasons Current season
Arenas	International Amphitheatre Chicago Coliseum Baltimore Civic Center Cole Field House Capital Centre/US Airways Arena Capital One Arena
General Managers	Ferry Nash Unseld Grunfeld
G-League affiliate	Capital City Go-Go
Administration	Ted Leonsis (Owner) Ernie Grunfeld (President & GM of Basketball Operations) Scott Brooks (Head Coach)
Retired numbers	10 11 25 41 45
NBA Championships (1)	1978
Eastern Conference Championships (4)	1971 1975 1978 1979
Culture and lore	Wes Unseld 1975 championship upset It ain't over till the fat lady sings The Big E Abe Pollin Earl the Pearl Agent Zero Robin Ficker
Media	TV WDCW NBC Sports Washington Comcast Network Radio WJFK-FM Announcers Steve Buckhantz Phil Chenier Dave Johnson Glenn Consor

v t e Basketball arenas of the Big East Conference
Men only	Capital One Arena (Georgetown) CHI Health Center Omaha (Creighton) Dunkin' Donuts Center (Providence) Fiserv Forum (Marquette) Madison Square Garden (St. John's) Prudential Center (Seton Hall)
Women only	Alumni Hall (Providence) D. J. Sokol Arena (Creighton) McDonough Gymnasium (Georgetown) Al McGuire Center (Marquette) Walsh Gymnasium (Seton Hall)
Both sexes	Carnesecca Arena (St. John's) Cintas Center (Xavier) Finneran Pavilion (Villanova) Hinkle Fieldhouse (Butler) Wells Fargo Center (Villanova) Wintrust Arena (DePaul)

Capital One Arena

Contents

History[edit]

Criticism[edit]

Gentrification[edit]

Ice quality issues[edit]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

External links[edit]

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Former names	MCI Center (1997–2006) Verizon Center (2006–2017)
Address	601 F Street NW
Location	Washington, D.C.
Coordinates	38°53′53″N 77°1′15″W / 38.89806°N 77.02083°W / 38.89806; -77.02083Coordinates: 38°53′53″N 77°1′15″W / 38.89806°N 77.02083°W / 38.89806; -77.02083
Public transit	Washington Metro at Gallery Place
Owner	Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Operator	Monumental Sports & Entertainment
Capacity	Basketball: 20,674 (1997–2002) 20,173 (2002–2010) 20,278 (2010–2011) 20,282 (2011–2012) 20,308 (2012–2013) 20,356 (2013–present) Ice hockey: 19,740 (1997–1999) 18,672 (1999–2002) 18,277 (2002–2010) 18,398 (2010–2011) 18,506 (2011–present)^[1]^[2]
Field size	1,020,000 square feet (95,000 m²)
Broke ground	October 18, 1995
Opened	December 2, 1997
Construction cost	US$260 million ($396 million in 2017 dollars^[3])
Architect	Ellerbe Becket^[4] Devrouax & Purnell^[4] KCF-SHG Architects^[4]
Project manager	Seagull Bay Sports, LLC.^[5]
Structural engineer	Delon Hampton & Associates^[6]
Services engineer	John J. Christie Associates^[4]
General contractor	Clark/Smoot^[7]
Tenants
Washington Wizards (NBA) (1997–present) Washington Capitals (NHL) (1997–present) Georgetown Hoyas (NCAA) (1997–present) Washington Mystics (WNBA) (1998–2018) Washington Power (NLL) (2001–2002) Washington Valor (AFL) (2017–present)

v t e NCAA Division I college basketball venues in Maryland and Washington, D.C.
A-10	Charles E. Smith Center (George Washington)
AmEast	UMBC Event Center (UMBC)
Big East	Capital One Arena (Georgetown men) McDonough Gymnasium (Georgetown women)
Big Ten	Xfinity Center (Maryland)
CAA	SECU Arena (Towson)
MEAC	Physical Education Complex (Coppin State) Burr Gymnasium (Howard) Hytche Athletic Center (Maryland Eastern Shore) Talmadge L. Hill Field House (Morgan State)
NEC	Knott Arena (Mount St. Mary's)
Patriot	Bender Arena (American) Reitz Arena (Loyola (MD)) Alumni Hall (Navy)

v t e Music venues of Washington, D.C.
Outdoor venues	Carter Barron Amphitheatre Fort Reno Park National Sylvan Theater Nationals Park Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium
Theaters and clubs	9:30 Club The Anthem Atlas Performing Arts Center Black Cat BloomBars Blues Alley Comet Ping Pong DAR Constitution Hall Echostage Harold and Sylvia Greenberg Theatre Howard Theatre John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Lincoln Theatre Lisner Auditorium Madam's Organ Blues Bar National Theatre Republic Gardens Sixth & I Historic Synagogue U Street Music Hall Warner Theatre
Arenas	Capital One Arena Charles E. Smith Center
Historic venues	The Bayou Bohemian Caverns The Cellar Door Washington Coliseum