The potential sale of the Washington Commanders has heated up in recent weeks. On Tuesday, Adam Schefter reported two possible ownership groups had submitted bids of $6 billion for the Commanders: The Josh Harris group, which features Mitchell Rales and Magic Johnson, and Canadian billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos. Both bids are fully funded.
Whoever buys the Commanders will inherit many of the problems plaguing the franchise under Daniel Snyder’s disastrous ownership.
Perhaps the most significant problem is a fan base that is apathetic or, in some cases, nonexistent.
The Washington Post, in partnership with the Schar School, recently conducted a poll of Washington-area residents on which of the area’s pro sports teams was their favorite.
Before we show the results, remember this would’ve been a silly question 25-30 years ago. The Washington area was defined by the then-Redskins and whether they won or lost. As many older fans have said, the mood of the city reflected on Washington’s previous game.
Unfortunately, that was a long time ago.
Check out this graphic, courtesy of The Washington Post-Schar School.
Washington Commanders' popularity has plummeted in the D.C. area since 2010.
(Source: Washington Post-Schar School Poll) pic.twitter.com/639JhX8iJW
— Mark J. Burns (@markjburns88) March 29, 2023
In 2010, 31% of area residents still considered the NFL team their favorite team. Far more than any of the other pro sports teams in the District. Now, in 2023, only 15% say the Commanders are their favorite, behind the MLB’s Nationals and surprisingly ahead of the NHL’s Capitals.
The Capitals and Nationals won world championships in 2018 and 2019, respectively. The Caps have been DC’s most successful sports franchise of the last 20 years, thanks to superstar Alex Ovechkin.
Per The Post, the poll surveyed more than 1,600 residents of D.C., Maryland and Virginia.
Here is some other information from the poll:
- 1 in 3 residents that have supported the Commanders no longer do
- Among current and former fans, almost half say they are less interested in the team than they were 10 years ago
- 56% of responders say Snyder is the primary reason for their waning interest
With Snyder likely selling the team, the new owner will have built-in goodwill that no other new sports owner would receive. However, work will have to be done to win back older fans and create new fans. Obviously, a good product on the field helps things, but fans have grown tired of all the controversies surrounding Snyder. And this was long before the multiple investigations into him and the organization began in 2020.
There’s also the disaster that is FedEx Field. There’s hope that a new ownership group can get a stadium built in Washington, D.C.
Another issue for longtime fans is the name change. Regardless of how some feel about it, some cannot get attached to the current team because it truly feels like an expansion team. How does that change? For as much talk as there is on social media about changing the name again, that’s not going to happen.
It will be interesting to see how fans respond once Snyder eventually sells the team. If the team wins and avoids any PR disasters off the field, Washington can slowly begin to rebuild a fractured and tortured fan base.