D.C. United has awarded a $150 million contract to Turner Construction Co. to build its Buzzard Point soccer stadium, an important step toward the Major League Soccer team's goal of starting the 2018 season in the Capitol Riverfront.

Team spokeswoman Lindsay Simpson confirmed late last week that the contract was awarded but declined to provide additional details.

The New York-based contractor, whose projects include Yankee Stadium in the Bronx and Lambeau Field's redevelopment in Green Bay, Wisconsin, is expected to start construction later this year. Kansas City-based Populous designed the 19,000-seat soccer-only stadium.

The total stadium cost is expected to be about $300 million when land acquisition, remediation, site work and surrounding infrastructure are included. D.C. has agreed to pay $150 million for those costs while the team — owned by Erick Thohir, Jason Levien and William Chang — is covering the hard construction costs.

The award is another milestone for D.C. United toward its goal of vacating the aging RFK Stadium, where it has played for the past two decades. It celebrated another milestone in April, when the city began demolition work to prepare the site ahead of the stadium's construction. Simpson said she expects the team to be in position to go vertical by the end of the year.