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The Minnesota Vikings got some good news concerning the financing and construction of the new stadium, as the National Football League announced that the team would be receiving a $200 million loan from the league's G4 program.
The G4 program is a program that the National Football League uses to help fund new stadiums for teams. (Under the previous Collective Bargaining Agreement, it was known as the G3 program.) The $200 million loan will be repaid by the Vikings over the next 15 years (with an option to waiver it to 25 years) via "revenues related to premium seating."
It has also come out that the Vikings have submitted applications to host Super Bowl LI (in 2017), LII (2018), and LIII (2019). Their preference, according to Tom Pelissero, is the 2018 contest.
The team still plans to break ground on the new stadium in October, and the Metrodome is scheduled to come down on or around February 1, 2014. (I really hope they have video streaming for the demolition, similar to what Seattle had when the Kingdome came down back in the late 90s.) The stadium is still on track to be ready for the 2016 season opener.
Work is also going to begin soon on the necessary renovations to TCF Bank Stadium, including the addition of 3,500 more seats, heating coils under the field, and the expansion of the concession areas.
For the first time in about a decade, the Minnesota Vikings don't have any stadium drama to worry about. Isn't it nice?