Capital One Arena
Washington, DC · Pro Basketball+Hockey
Founding membership for Wizards & Capitals fans. Free, verified, permanent.
- Member cap
- 20,356
- Cost to join
- Free
- Verification
- Email + Phone
- Status
- Open
— verified members.
Venue encyclopedia
Independent, no paid placements
What attending a pro basketball+hockey game at the Washington, DC venue is actually like: seating, arrival, weather, food, and the seats we'd point a friend toward (or away from).
- Opened
- 1997
- Last renovated
- 2024
- Capacity
- 20,356
- Roof
- Indoor / climate-controlled
- Orientation
- Indoor arena. The home pro basketball team and the home pro hockey team share the building, along with a college pro basketball tenant for select games. The venue sits at the center of a downtown entertainment district that grew up around it.
Neighborhood
Penn Quarter / Chinatown, in the heart of downtown DC. The setting is dense urban: a Metro station shares the venue's footprint, restaurants and bars line the surrounding blocks, and the National Mall is a 15-minute walk south.
What it feels like
An urban arena that is genuinely walk-up-able from much of downtown DC. The bowl is steep and the upper deck sits close. The crowd ranges from buttoned-up corporate on weeknights to loud-and-loyal on marquee playoff nights; the hockey crowd is, on average, louder than the basketball crowd. Recent renovations modernized the concourses and added a new food program.
Seating tiers
Lower bowl (100s)
Rows 1-22Closest to the floor or ice. Steep pitch. Premium pricing.
Club / mezzanine (200s)
Renovated club tier with bar, indoor concourse, and table-service food. Best comfort-and-sightline balance.
Upper bowl (400s)
Rows 1-20Steep upper bowl. Sightlines are clean from almost every row. The cheapest seats in major-market DC.
Sections we'd pick
- Lower bowl 105-110 mid-court / center-ice for premium sightlines
- Upper bowl 410-413 mid-court / center-ice for the best price-to-sightline ratio
- Club 220-222 for amenities with a strong angle
Sections we'd skip
- Lower bowl behind-the-basket rows 1-3 where the rim obscures the floor
- Upper bowl far corners above row 16 where the angle turns shallow
Arrival
- Primary route
- I-395 to downtown, or 14th Street from the north. Surface streets in Penn Quarter back up 30-60 minutes pre-event.
- Rail / transit
- Metro Gallery Place / Chinatown station shares the venue's foundation. Red, Yellow, and Green lines all stop here. About 10 minutes from Union Station; 15 from most downtown hotels. The fastest way in.
- Rideshare
- Designated zone on F Street. The 7th Street side is heavily congested post-event; walking a block north to G Street trims wait time.
- Parking
- 800 spots , median $45 . Prepay recommended.
- Walk to gates
- ~3 minutes (median)
- Notes
- Limited on-site parking. Surrounding garages widely available but expensive on event nights. Most fans take Metro.
Weather and timing
Roof
Indoor
Climate controlled. DC summers are hot and humid outside; winters are mild but can be wet. Once inside, weather is irrelevant.
Food inside
Renovated concourse with a strong DC-and-mid-Atlantic food program. Half-smoke sausages, Maryland crab cakes, and a roster of local craft beer. New stands include a smashburger counter and a Korean rice-bowl operator that draw lines.
Food and pre-game outside
Penn Quarter and Chinatown have one of the densest restaurant rows in DC outside the venue. H Street and 7th Street are loaded with bars, ramen counters, and pre-event dinner spots. The National Portrait Gallery is two blocks away and is free.
Accessibility
ADA seating with companion seats in every level. Sensory rooms available; reserve through guest services. Metro Gallery Place has elevators directly to the venue's plaza level.
Worth knowing before you go
- Metro is the right way in; Gallery Place / Chinatown is at the door.
- The 2024 renovation widened concourses and modernized the food and bar program; arrive 45 minutes early to walk through.
- The home pro hockey crowd is, on average, louder than the home pro basketball crowd; if you have a choice between two ticket types, hockey usually wins for atmosphere.
- Mobile-pay throughout.
- Post-event, walk a block north to G Street for shorter rideshare waits than the F Street zone.
What Wizards & Capitals fans get
- A permanent member number that reflects when you joined. The lower the number, the higher your standing — forever.
- Priority access to seat opportunities at Capital One Arena. Seniority determines order. No luck involved.
- First look at every new perk, partner offer, and member event — founding members always hear before anyone else.
- Founding Member status. This tier closes when the roster fills at 20,356. It doesn't reopen.
Wizards & Capitals fans: your spot is waiting.
Free founding membership. Verified by email and phone. Your member number is permanent — the earlier you join, the higher your standing. One Pro Basketball+Hockey membership per fan.
Claim my founding spot →Free forever · Verified members only · One per sport