FedEx Field FedExField ( originally Jack Kent Cooke Stadium ) is a football stadium located in an unincorporated area near the Capital Beltway ( I - 495 ) in Prince George ' s County , Maryland , United States , near the site of the old Capital Centre ( later called USAir Arena ) . FedExField is the home of the Washington Redskins football team . With seating for 79 , 000 , FedExField is now the third largest venue in the NFL in terms of regular capacity . Up until 2010 , FedExField held 91 , 704 patrons and was the largest venue in the league . History . FedExField was built as a replacement for the Redskins ' prior venue , Robert F . Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington , D . C . In 1994 , Jack Kent Cooke sought to build a new stadium on the grounds adjacent to Laurel Park Racecourse along Whiskey Bottom and Brock Bridge roads . Lack of parking facilities and support prompted a second site selection . The stadium opened in 1997 as Jack Kent Cooke Stadium , in honor of the recently deceased owner of the team , and the stadium site was known as Raljon . Before the stadium was built , the Wilson Farm was there . The name " Raljon " is a portmanteau of Jack Kent Cooke ' s sons ' first names – " Ralph " and " John . " Notably , Cooke was even able to register Raljon with the United States Postal Service as a legal alternate address for the 20785 zip code of Landover , Maryland , in which the stadium is located , and went to some lengths to require media to use Raljon in dateline s from the stadium . A special exit , Exit 16 ( Arena Drive ) , was built from Interstate 495 , the Capital Beltway . After the team and stadium were purchased by Daniel Snyder , the naming rights were sold to the FedEx corporation in November 1999 for an average of $ 7 . 6 million per year . FedExField has not had a football season in which the stadium failed to sell out its non - premium tickets . Even though it ' s the NFL ' s largest stadium , the waiting list for Redskins season tickets has reached over 30 years . Although the Redskins have never sold out the entire stadium , the team has not had a game blacked out on local television since 1972 ( when home game broadcasts were banned outright ) because it does not count " premium club level seating " when calculating sellouts ( their sellout streak dates to 1965 , eight years before the new blackout rules were implemented ) . For the past six years at FedExField , Redskins fans have set the regular - season home paid attendance record . In 2005 , the team drew a record 716 , 998 fans overall . The December 30 , 2007 , 27 – 6 win against the Dallas Cowboys was the most watched game in Redskins history , with 90 , 910 fans in the stands to see Washington clinch a playoff spot . The August 28 , 2004 BCA Classic between the Virginia Tech Hokies and USC Trojans attracted 91 , 665 spectators . Design . The stadium has five levels – the Lower Level , the Club Level , the Lower and Upper Suite Levels , and the Upper Level . The Lower , Club , and Upper Levels are all named after important figures of the Redskins , NFL , and Washington , D . C . area . The Lower Level is officially named " George Preston Marshall Lower Level " , The Club is named " Joe Gibbs Club Level , and The Upper Level is called " Pete Rozelle Upper Level . " The Suite Levels have 243 suite , lounge , and Owner ' s Club luxury boxes and 15 , 044 club seats . Notable events . FedExField hosts the annual Prince George ' s Classic college football game , which is a game usually between two historically black universities . It has hosted several other college football games as well , including the 1998 game between the University of Notre Dame and the United States Naval Academy , as well as the 2004 Black Coaches Association Classic between the University of Southern California Trojans and the Virginia Tech Hokies . The stadium has hosted numerous other events as well , including many big - time concerts . FedExField is not well known as a soccer venue , as D . C . United of Major League Soccer elected to remain at RFK Stadium after the new stadium ' s opening . As Jack Kent Cooke Stadium , it hosted four preliminary matches and one quarterfinal doubleheader in the 1999 Women ' s World Cup . During the July 2005 World Series of Football , D . C . United hosted Chelsea F . C . there ; the stadium did not sell out , but the 31 , 473 spectators represented D . C . United ' s third - highest ever home attendance . On August 9 , 2009 , D . C . United hosted another international friendly against Real Madrid at FedExField . On July 30 , 2011 , Manchester United ended its 2011 Summer Tour with a 2 – 1 win over F . C . Barcelona at FedExField in front of 81 , 807 fans . This represented the largest crowd for the sport in D . C . - area history . Other notable events include : Criticisms and potential replacement . Many fans feel FedExField does not compare favorably with RFK Stadium . " Sports Illustrated " ' s rankings of " NFL Fan Value Experience " rated FedExField 28th out of 31 NFL stadiums . In January 2007 , " The Washington Post " reported that Redskins owner Daniel Snyder was meeting with Washington , D . C . , officials about building a new stadium in order to return the team to the District . In the 2011 offseason , nearly 10 , 000 seats were removed from the upper deck to reduce capacity to 81 , 807 , making FedExField the second largest venue in the NFL . . During the 2012 offseason , 4 , 000 additional seats were removed to make way for new suites and party decks .