With Virginia successfully luring the Redskins’ training camp to Richmond, the Commonwealth now has slightly bigger aspirations.
As explained by the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Virginia would like to build a new stadium for the Redskins. Governor Bob McDonnell made no bones about it during a visit to the team’s training camp.
“We’d love that opportunity,” McDonnell said. “If the right group of business and government folks came together to make an offer, it could happen.”
The current building in Landover, Maryland was built after a tentative deal to locate in Northern Virginia fell through. And while the lease doesn’t expire until 2027, it’s never too early to start pitting Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia against each other, with the goal of finagling the best possible deal with maximum public contribution.
Folks who oppose the use of taxpayer money for football stadiums can complain all they want. But with 31 NFL facilities and far more than 31 cities interested in hosting NFL teams, it’s simply good business for NFL franchises to let the municipalities battle it out.