Minnesota Vikings Team History

The team was officially named the Minnesota Vikings on September 27, 1960; the name is partly meant to reflect Minnesota’s place as a center of Scandinavian American culture. From the start, the Vikings embraced an energetic marketing program that produced first-year season ticket sales of nearly 26,000 and an average home attendance of 34,586, about 85 percent of Metropolitan Stadium’s capacity of 40,800. Eventually, the capacity of Met Stadium was increased to 47,900.

As the stadium was designed first and foremost for the Minnesota Vikings, they had the fewest problems. However, the economics of 21st century professional sports meant that the Vikings owners wanted more luxury suites and better concessions. Renovations were rejected twice, with the 2001 price tag at $269 million.

The Vikings played their first game at the Metrodome in a preseason matchup against the Seattle Seahawks on August 21, 1982. Minnesota won 7-3. The first touchdown in the dome was scored by Joe Senser on an 11-yard pass from Tommy Kramer. The first regular-season game at the Metrodome was the 1982 opener on September 12, when the Vikings defeated Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 17-10. Rickey Young scored the first regular-season touchdown in the dome on a 3-yard run in the 2nd quarter. On January 9, 1983, the Vikings defeated the Atlanta Falcons, 30-24, in a 1st-round game that was the first playoff game at the Metrodome. On January 17, 1999, the Falcons defeated the Vikings in the first NFC championship game played at the dome. On December 29, 2013, the Vikings played their final game at the Metrodome, a 14-13 victory over the Detroit Lions. The team’s all time record at the dome was 162-88 in the regular season and 6-4 in playoff games.

In 1998, Red McCombs bought the Minnesota Vikings for US$250 million. After an unsuccessful attempt to replace the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, McCombs sold the team to new owner Zygi Wilf before the 2005 football season.

Wilf and five partners purchased the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League from Red McCombs in 2005 for a reported US$600 million. Forbes estimates the 2014 value of the franchise at US$1.007 billion, or 21st of the 32 NFL teams.

For several years the Vikings and Wilf have stated that their former home, the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome was inadequate and had lobbied for a new stadium. In May 2012, the Minnesota Vikings moved closer to getting a new $975 million stadium after the state Senate approved a plan that relies heavily on public financing. Later that month the deal was signed by Gov. Mark Dayton and narrowly approved by the Minneapolis City Council, ending any speculation of relocation.

U.S. Bank Stadium is a fixed-roof stadium located in the Downtown East section of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, on the former site of Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. U.S. Bank Stadium serves as the home of the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL) and the Minnesota Golden Gophers Baseball Team (NCAA). The Vikings played at the Metrodome from 1982 until its closure in 2013 and before that at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, Minnesota from 1961 to 1981. During the 2014 and 2015 seasons, the Vikings played at TCF Bank Stadium on the campus of the University of Minnesota while the new stadium was being built. On June 17, 2016, U.S. Bank Stadium was deemed substantially complete by contractor Mortenson Construction. The stadium was substantially completed six weeks before the ribbon-cutting ceremony and official grand opening, which was held on July 22, 2016. Authority to use and occupy the stadium was handed over to the Vikings and the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority. The Vikings played the first regular-season game at U.S. Bank Stadium on September 18, 2016, against the Green Bay Packers on NBC Sunday Night Football.