D.C. United to play final match at RFK Stadium

Washington's RFK Stadium wasn't built for soccer; it opened in 1961 as D.C. Stadium for baseball, football and concerts. But over the past 30-plus years, through multiple leagues and shared seasons with other local pro outfits, through D.C. United's final home game on Sunday before relocating to a new stadium next season, soccer took root on East Capitol Street.

In that time, RFK gained a mystique. It came from not only longevity and quantity but the fact that, despite physical flaws acquired late in life, RFK had a heartbeat, a soul.

The enclosed design retained sound, turning the volume of 20,000 into the fury of 80,000. Navigating the concrete ramps, walking through the claustrophobic concourse and crossing the catwalks into the upper reaches was a journey into yesteryear.

"The soul is real," said D.C. United's Ben Olsen, who played at RFK for 12 years and has coached there for eight, totaling half his life. "This building still has more character than any place in the country. There's a feeling here at night that's different. I don't know if it's the lights. There's just a different aura — the color, the glow, the feel is different than all of the new parks."

RFK is the only U.S. facility to have hosted NASL's Soccer Bowl (1980), the World Cup (1994), an Olympic group stage (1996), the MLS Cup (three times) and the Women's World Cup (2003).

The U.S. men's national team played at RFK more than any other venue. The Rose Bowl is the only other stadium in its original form with a comparable soccer portfolio.

And RFK was at MLS' service when U.S. soccer needed stadiums to launch a new league in 1996. At the end of its 22nd campaign, D.C. United will play its 347th and final regular-season match there Sunday against the New York Red Bulls. (Between 1961 and 1996, the team best known for inhabiting the facility, the NFL's Redskins, made 266 regular-season appearances.)

"It's a fan base that understands the game and was one of the first in this country to really get it," he said. "They understood the nuances. They chanted and cheered the whole time. They appreciated a good pass, just like a good goal."

Hall of Famer Alexi Lalas, who played at RFK for visiting MLS teams and the national team, remembers the labyrinth of subterranean hallways and, like the band in "This Is Spinal Tap," getting lost backstage. He compared the basement tunnels to something out of "The Silence of the Lambs."

"We know it's dirty and disgusting and ugly, but it's ours," Lalas said. "It never compared to stadiums with all of the luxuries, but it was something authentic and organic."

Next summer, D.C. United is scheduled to christen Audi Field.

On the final day of the season all MLS teams play at the same time, setting up the chaos dubbed "Decision Day."

In the Western Conference, five spots have been secured with three teams — San Jose, Dallas and Salt Lake — vying for the final playoff berth. The Earthquakes have the clearest path to the postseason, needing a win over Minnesota United. The other two teams need help.