New Minnesota Vikings Stadium Could Also House MLS, Owner Zygi Wilf Says

On Monday night, Ted Glover of SB Nation’s Daily Norseman offered some analysis on the new design from a Vikings fan-perspective:

As mentioned by Glover, the stadium will look to be as much functional and practical as it is sharp-looking. Rather than using a retractable roof, the stadium will use ETFE to provide natural sunlight to the field and collect solar power that will make the Vikings more energy efficient.

The big, headline out of Zygi Wilf’s proposal for a new Minnesota Vikings stadium was, undoubtedly, the $1 billion price tag for the retractable-roof facility. Combined with the $240 million worth of estimated infrastructure upgrades that the surround area the Twin Cities suburb -- plus whatever inevitable cost overruns -- we’re talking about one of the most expensive sports facilities ever built in the United States. But there was a notable subhead to the story that IMSoccer News pointed out: Wilf apparently likes the idea of having a MLS team as one of the stadium’s tenants.

What makes this at least somewhat interesting is Minnesota’s relatively rich soccer history. The NSC Minnesota Stars currently play in the second division NASL and there’s been pro soccer played in the area pretty regularly ever since the original NASL’s Minnesota Kicks moved to town in 1976.