Vikings execs on Thursday "unveiled the design" of the 10,000-square-foot, privately funded "Vikings Voyage," the team's HOF that "opens next month at U.S. Bank Stadium," according to Rochelle Olson of the Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE. The exhibit will be "open on Vikings game days for ticketed fans only." Admission is free, but fans "will need to sign up through the Vikings for a ticketed admission time." Olson notes fans upon entering will "get a silicon wristband that tracks and logs their activities so they can see how they measure against players and other fans." Fans can also "test their vertical jumps against Vikings wide receivers, their foot speed against the running backs, their hitting force against linebackers and their ability to catch a pass in defensive traffic." The exhibit is "expected to open for the team's first preseason home game on Aug. 28" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 7/15). In St. Paul, Julio Ojeda-Zapata notes the "Vikings Voyage" is located "directly above the team store" and is also "reachable via the Minneapolis skyway." Features of the exhibit include "an homage" to Pro Football HOFer Cris Carter "featuring 1,000 chrome footballs hanging from the ceiling to symbolize his career catches." A "battle armor" exhibit displays Vikings team uniforms from '69, '89 and today, along with a touch-screen "brimming with details about uniform features." There is also a 40-foot-long space "made to resemble the hull of a historical Viking longship, with a 27-foot-long, 7-foot-tall screen displaying Vikings video" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 7/15).
ON THE PITCH: Marketing agency 3 Points Consulting President Andrea Yoch, a spokesperson for the Aug. 3 Int'l Champions Cup match between Chelsea and AC Milan at U.S. Bank Stadium, said that about 45,000 tickets "had been sold as of Wednesday" for the first sporting event at the venue. In St. Paul, Andy Greder noted that total "exceeds the announced attendance of 34,047 for the debut ICC match in Minnesota" in '14, when EPL club Manchester City and Superleague Greece's Olympiacos played at TCF Bank Stadium. Yoch said, "We are seeing two crowds. The passionate soccer fans, who want to see some of the best in the world, and those that want to see the first event at U.S. Bank Stadium. There is room for both" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 7/14).
PROVEN WORK: In Minnesota, Nick Halter notes Minneapolis-based Mortenson Construction, which designed U.S. Bank Stadium, "viewed the project as a catalyst to win more jobs building NFL stadiums." With the "now-vacant Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis as its only NFL stadium project, the company needed something like U.S. Bank Stadium to prove it can handle billion-dollar football palaces." Sports facilities account for 15% of the company's business, and "ongoing projects" include building a new arena for the Warriors in S.F. and a soccer stadium for Minnesota United FC in St. Paul. While Mortenson "works on those projects, its executives are keeping their eyes on baseball in hopes of parlaying the company's successful Target Field work into new ballparks" (MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL BUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/15 issue).
