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The Washington Commanders will return to the venue of RFK Stadium, where Joe Theismann became a household name.
This is where the former NFL quarterback threw his first and last NFL passes. After moving from the nation’s capital to Landover, Maryland, in 1997, the commanders are expected to return home in 2030.
“There’s an old saying that you can’t go home again. Commanders are proving that you can,” Theismann told PK Press Club Digital in a recent interview.
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Former professional football player Joe Theismann reacts on the sidelines before the game between the Washington Commanders and the Arizona Cardinals at FedEx Field. (Tommy Gilligan/USA TODAY Sports)
President Donald Trump would like his name to be put on the next stadium. Although the White House has not confirmed the reports, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said it would be a “great name, because it was President Trump who made the rebuilding of the new stadium possible.”
Trump, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and team owner Josh Harris were in the Oval Office when the deal for the RFK Stadium site was announced. But Trump sparked controversy when he threatened to halt the team’s plans to build a new stadium in the nation’s capital if it didn’t bring back its old Redskins nickname.
Asked about the possibility of Trump’s name being on the stadium, Theismann didn’t offer much.
(Left) A general view of fireworks as the American flag is displayed on the field before an NFL game between the Washington Commanders and the Seattle Seahawks at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, November 2, 2025. (Right) President Donald Trump speaks during an event on drug pricing in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, District of Columbia, November 6, 2025. (Scott Taetsch/Getty Images; Evan Vucci/AP Photo)
EX-NFL STARS JOE THEISMANN AND ALEJANDRO VILLANUEVA PRAISE LEAGUE FOR BRINGING “CULTURAL WEAPON” ABROAD
“President Trump is our president. Whatever happens in the future, it’s up to the commanders and the president, and that’s what it’s going to be,” he said.
Whatever the stadium is called, Theismann sees the move as bringing together generations of Washington fans – past, present and future.
“It’s exciting. Josh being a guy who grew up a Redskins fan in that era – that’s a big part of the ownership – it’s exciting for them to come home too,” Theismann said. “I think the people who were Redskins fans and watched us play at RFK Stadium are also Commanders fans, and it will be nostalgic for them. It will be nostalgic for the fans to go back to a stadium that will be there – where this site once stood, where a lot of their childhood memories were so special.”
Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann (7) in action against the Miami Dolphins at RFK Stadium. (Malcolm Emmons/USA TODAY Sports)
The domed stadium will cost around $3.7 billion.
