Doctor Warns Fans About U.S. Bank Stadium Noise Levels

We’ve already gotten a couple of initial reports about how loud U.S. Bank Stadium could potentially be. In the lead up to the first game for the Minnesota Vikings in their new home, a local doctor has issued a warning to fans about how the volume could affect their health.

Dr. David Geddes, an audiologist for HealthPartners, has said that the noise levels in the stadium could be potentially damaging to a person’s hearing in the long-term. A one-time visit might not have any lasting effect, but according to Geddes it’s something that could build up over time.

According to the article from WCCO, the Vikings will be offering earplugs at the Guest Services section of U.S. Bank Stadium.

KFAN, the Vikings’ flagship radio station, says that the volume level was pretty high at the one sporting event that has been held at U.S. Bank Stadium already. A.J. Mansour was at the International Champions Cup soccer match between Chelsea and A.C. Milan on 3 August, and measured some of the noise levels. For the first goal that was scored, Mansour says that the noise levels inside the stadium reached as high as 105 decibels (dB).

For comparison, the sound of a lawn mower checks in at approximately 107 dB. As Mansour points out, this was for a goal that happened in a game that “maybe” 20% of the folks in the stadium really, really cared about. In a spot where the stadium’s primary resident does something of note in a game that about 95% of the fans in attendance will care about, I can imagine that it would get significantly louder.

We know that the Metrodome had the ability to get ridiculously loud. However, this old article from the Chicago Tribune says that the loudest sound levels recorded at the Metrodome were approximately 125 dB, and that took place during a World Series game between the Minnesota Twins and the St. Louis Cardinals back in 1987.

So yes, it appears that U.S. Bank Stadium is going to be ridiculously loud, and should serve to give the home team a tremendous home field advantage. If you’re going to be attending Vikings games at the stadium this year or at any time in the future, you might want to take advantage of those earplugs. After all, cheering for the Minnesota Vikings is awesome. . .but being able to hear people talk to you on the other 350+ days of the year is pretty awesome, too.