Located in the nation’s capital, the Verizon Center is the home of the Washington Wizards. The Wizards have been part of Washington DC’s sports scene since 1973 after moving from Baltimore. Once moving to DC the team, originally known as the Bullets played at the Capital Center, a 18,000 seat facility for 24 seasons. Located in Landover, MD by the 1990s the Bullets and the Washington Capitals (NHL) who shared the Capital Center wanted a new state of the art arena built in Washington DC.
Construction began in October 1995 and the $260 million facility was financed using private loans. MCI Communications bought the naming rights to the arena, thus it was originally known as the MCI Center. In 2006 the MCI Center was renamed the Verizon Center after Verizon acquired MCI Communications.
FACTS & FIGURES
-Opened: 12/2/1997
-Capacity: 20,173
-Tenants: Washington Wizards (NBA), Washington Capitals (NHL)
-Cost: $260 million
-Architect: Ellerbe Becket
-Address: 601 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004
-Former Name(s): MCI Center