Washington Redskins hire Bjarke Ingels Group to design new stadium

The Washington Redskins always find a way to draw attention. With the NFL playoffs starting this weekend, and with the owners voting early next week on which three teams will move to Los Angeles, reports have surfaced saying that the D.C. franchise is looking to build a new home.

The Redskins have hired Danish architecture team Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), according to the Washington Post. No location has been set, but unlike the St. Louis Rams, Oakland Raiders, and San Diego Chargers, the Redskins will not be L.A.-bound. The team will stay in the DMV region, and building at the site of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington is an option.

BIG is inexperienced with designing NFL stadiums, but the firm has drawn plenty of attention recently. Its portfolio includes Google’s headquarters campus in Mountain View, Calif., and Two World Trade Center in New York City.

The Redskins, led by hands-on owner Daniel Snyder, are trying to leave the 82,000-seat FedEx Field in Landover, Md. The facility has been in use since 1997, and its current lease runs through 2027.

The team been trying to conjure up local support for a new home, but the Washington Post report says politicians might not be willing to help because of the team’s nickname, which many Native American groups consider a racist slur.