(Bloomberg) -- Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin said he’s ready to pitch a new stadium in the state to whoever ends up buying the NFL’s Washington Commanders.
The Commanders currently play at 25-year-old FedEx Field in Maryland. The team is contractually obligated to play at the site until 2027 but has been seeking a new home. It previously played at RFK Stadium in Washington.
The team said in November it had hired Bank of America Corp. to explore options, including a sale, following increasing pressure on owner Daniel Snyder from complaints of behavior such as having cultivated a toxic workplace culture.
“I continue to believe that Virginia would be a great place for a professional football team,” Youngkin said Monday in an interview with Bloomberg journalists in Washington.
“I would hope to have a chance to negotiate something, at least to have a serious discussion,” the Republican governor said. “I will look out for Virginia taxpayers first and foremost, but I think there’s a real opportunity here.”
He said he hasn’t engaged with any potential bidders.
Youngkin noted that he has proposed a state budget amendment to spend $500,000 on planning work for a new Commanders stadium in Virginia.
“My hope is that communicates very clearly to whoever the buyer may be, that we’d sure like to have you in Virginia and we want to sit down and talk to you,” Youngkin said.
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