One Group of Fans Screwed by Vikings Schedule
The Minnesota Vikings will embark on a first-of-its-kind adventure in late September, travelling to Dublin, Ireland, for a tryst with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 4 and to London, England, the following week for a showdown with the Cleveland Browns.
The Vikings schedule isn’t kind to one section of fans.
No NFL team has ever played games in non-USA countries in back-to-back weeks, so in the interest of growing the brand globally, the Vikings will welcome a bit of history.
But one group will be screwed by the scheduling — Vikings fans living in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and surrounding areas.
Ohio, Pennsylvania Area Vikings Fans Left in the Cold
For starters, some purple fans don’t want their favorite team playing abroad because of strong nationalist leanings. They feel everything should be done in America — America First is the working theory — and are upset by “having to wake up for 8 am football.”
Those naysayers are inevitably on social media and are not shy about tweeting their disapproval.
Then, there is a group that has nothing to do with American isolationism — fans living in the Rust Belt who just want to see the Vikings nearby. Their grievance is understandable and not rooted in ideology.
Very easily, Minnesota could’ve played in Pittsburgh and Cleveland this season, just like the Vikings’ foremost rival, the Green Bay Packers. Jordan Love’s team will play at Pittsburgh and Cleveland in front of hostile crowds, and Ohio-based + Pennsylvania-based cheese fans will see their club play without the hassle of flying across the Atlantic Ocean.
For better or worse, Vikings fans in the same area of the country have no such luck. They must wait eight years before Minnesota returns to Cleveland or Pittsburgh — if the games are not shipped to Europe once again in 2033.
The Financial Difference
While it may sound like bellyaching from Rust Belt Vikings fans, their umbrage is real. The financial discrepancy between watching the Vikings play in London versus Cleveland, for example, is vast.
Here’s an example —
Cleveland Resident Vikings Fan:
Ticket = $85
Gas = $5-10
Lodging = $0
Cleveland Resident Vikings Fan,
Traveling to London:
Ticket = $150
Travel = $800
Lodging = $500 (3 Nights)
Difference for One Person: $1,200
Difference for Group of 4: $3,700
And those are bare-bones estimates for the London game. If a fan and her family wanted good seats for Browns-Vikings in London, the price would climb near $600 for a single ticket.
For a solo fan, the price in Cleveland is around a hundred bucks for the whole shebang. That hundie turns into over a thousand with international airfare, lodging, and tickets.
If you hear an Ohio-based Vikings fan complain about the team’s back-to-backer in Europe, that person has a reasonable beef.
Length between Seeing Vikings in OH, PA
There’s also the drought to consider.
Minnesota last played a regular season game in the city of Cleveland — the Adrian Peterson stiff-arm game — in 2009. With the London news, the Vikings won’t play in The Land until 2033, at the earliest. That’s a 24-year gap on the menu.
When Minnesota next travels to Pittsburgh, assuming there’s no international flex in 2033, the gap will be 16 years.
Put plainly, through their actions, the NFL does not care about Minnesota making an appearance in Cleveland or Pittsburgh. It is unimportant or a strange coincidence at best.
The Show Goes On
Ultimately, there is no cure. The show goes on. Kevin O’Connell and Co. will make history in 4.5 months, perhaps paving the way for other franchises to pounce on consecutive international games — or avoid the scenario if the Vikings flop with the experiment.
O’Connell’s bunch will have eight home games this season — those are untouched — seven road contests, and two quasi-home contests because European crowds tend to love the purple and gold.
PFT Highlights Schedule Advantage
Pro Football Talk‘s Mike Florio highlighted the element of enhanced homefield advantage on Tuesday.
He explained, “The Vikings’ short-straw road trip to Europe for back-to-back games against the Steelers in Ireland and the Browns in London comes with a competitive advantage. Minnesota will have two fewer traditional road games than they would have had in 2025. Although the Vikings’ schedule will be disrupted by playing two games on consecutive Sundays on foreign soil, they will enter truly hostile territory two fewer times than the rest of the division, and most of the conference.”
“And while it won’t matter if the Vikings lose both games, they’re getting an enhanced opportunity to win by not having the play in Pittsburgh or Cleveland. Especially if either or both of those games otherwise would have been scheduled for later in the season, when weather could be a factor.”
For curious minds, Minnesota will likely face Aaron Rodgers for the 31st time in Ireland if he ever signs with the Steelers.
Florio concluded, “When it’s time to convert the final standings into a seven-team playoff tree, the Vikings could have an edge. It won’t matter if they aren’t generally ‘good’ in 2025.”
“If they’re good enough to compete for a postseason berth, the two games on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean could be the difference between winning the division or finishing second — or between making the playoffs or missing out.”
For the sake of Ohioans and Pennsylvanians who double as purple fans, here’s to hoping the team, alas, shows up in 2033.
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