The 1 Fascinating Fact about the City of Minneapolis and the Super Bowl
Dustin Baker
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The Minnesota Vikings haven’t been to a Super Bowl in 46 years, and that factoid is well-documented, especially by non-Vikings-fans. The commentary usually involves unoriginal “trophy case” jokes.
But the city of Minneapolis does own one fascinating claim to fame — Minneapolis is the only “cold weather” city to host the Super Bowl more than once in the last 40 years.
The 1 Fascinating Fact about the City of Minneapolis and the Super Bowl
Indeed, Minneapolis hosted the Super Bowl in 1992 when the Washington Commanders downed the Buffalo Bills at the Metrodome — and in 2018 with the Philadelphia Eagles defeating Tom Brady and the New England Patriots at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Other than Minneapolis, Detroit, New Jersey, and Indianapolis, the Super Bowl is predominantly a warm-weather event, and 2023 is no different. This weekend, the aforementioned Eagles will travel to Glendale, Arizona, for a date with Patrick Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs. The Eagles are favored by a point and a half as of February 5th to conquer the Chiefs.
Detroit hosted the Super Bowl twice, too, but the first shindig was back in 1982. The NFL plopped the big game in the Motor City again in 2006 when the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Seattle Seahawks, but then that was it for Detroit-based championship games — of any kind.
The Vikings have reportedly asked for the Super Bowl again in 2028, 2029, and 2030, but no verdict has been rendered. The next two Super Bowls, after this weekend’s, will occur in Las Vegas and New Orleans because, again, the NFL loves the championship in warm weather.
Here’s the history of Super Bowls by city, with the number indicating how many times each city has hosted:
- Miami = 11
- New Orleans = 10
- Los Angeles = 7
- Tampa Bay = 4
- Phoenix = 4
- San Diego = 3
- Houston = 3
- Minneapolis = 2
- Detroit = 2
- Atlanta = 2
- San Francisco = 1
- Santa Clara = 1
- Jacksonville = 1
- Dallas = 1
- Indianapolis = 1
- New Jersey = 1
The Vikings have also requested to host the NFL Draft soon. Daily Norseman reported in March 2022, “The Vikings have applied to host the NFL Draft in 2025, 2026, and 2027. Given how heavily the Vikings have invested in their facilities in recent years and the appeal of the Twin Cities area as a whole, you’d have to think that the NFL Draft will eventually make its way to Minneapolis/St. Paul.”
It’s a safe bet that Minnesota will eventually land the draft but a relative longshot to land the Super Bowl again.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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