The Vikings still plan on moving into a new stadium by the 2016 season, but it turns out that they're going to have to pay even more money to make that happen.
Already, the team had committed to paying about $477 million with the state of Minnesota offering $500 million and the city of Minneapolis paying $150 million. But in order to keep the design the team wants, more money will need to be added.
Thus, the team said Friday it would contribute another $41.4 million to the coffers in order to keep the stadium design the way the Vikings want it.
From the Minneapolis Star Tribune: "Vikings spokesman Lester Bagley said Friday morning that the only way to retain the stadium’s 'iconic' design was to increase the team’s contribution. The team will help pay for technological perks such as ribbon boards, HDTVs throughout the stadium and a high-tech scoreboard."
Apparently, many of the construction bids that were made were higher than previously thought, so in order to keep the glass siding and the scoreboards and everything else that's deemed necessary, the Vikings owners had to pull out their checkbooks.
"From Day 1, our goal has been to build a stadium that benefits the entire state of Minnesota and provides the best game day experience possible for our fans," Vikings president Mark Wilf said in a statement. "This additional commitment is to ensure several of the features that are so important to all users of the stadium remain in this project."
Groundbreaking for the new stadium will take place Dec. 3. The team will play the 2014 and '15 seasons in TCF Bank Stadium, where the University of Minnesota competes.
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