U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis in Midst of Scandal
http://www.startribune.com/stadium-bill-sponsor-u-s-bank-stadium-oversight-committee-is-ugly-government-that-must-be-changed/403760896/So, the taxpayers were forced to finance a large part of the Minnesota Vikings Stadium in Minneapolis. Named the U.S. Bank Stadium, it's a centerpiece of the Twin Cities skyline, now. Lots of luxury suites and high-priced tickets for Vikings games most people can't afford.
So, we just learned that the heads of the organization that governs this edifice get two suites and a bunch of close-in parking spaces to use for "promoting the stadium." The idea is that it will be used for public relations and convincing people that this taxpayer-funded boondoggle is somehow good for the city.
Well, it turns out that those two suites are being used by the sports authority folks to host friends and family, instead, giving their close friends and family a free ride for those games and other events at this edifice to greed and bilking the taxpayers. What a surprise, eh?
Well, they've been found out and an audit is underway. In that audit, a list of people invited to use those suites is being demanded. Predictably, "no records of attendance were kept." Will someone be fired? Probably not.
In the meantime, most residents of Minneapolis and the surrounding area simply cannot afford to attend games, concerts and other events at this beautiful Billion-Dollar monstrosity.
Welcome to the world of professional sports and grifting.
See the news story at the link for more.
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finance football stadiums though. The owners are very wealthy and there is a great deal of money made off the sport. The teams certainly aren't hurting for money.
And sports teams can be very coercive by threatening to move if cities won't help them to finance new stadiums. The Oakland Raiders and Oakland are going though this right now. Las Vegas put forth a really strong package deal to try and entice them to move.
The Packers are the last municipally owned sports team. Maybe some cities will take note. The Packers certainly won't be threatening to leave...
That said the new stadium if pretty outstanding in terms of the architecture. Will be watching the game tonight with Dallas. Hope to see a game there someday. Been a Vikings fan since I was just a tyke.
But speaking of luxury & extravagance, if you want to really go all out you need a pool like Jacksonville:
We just got the Rams. Now we get a billion dollar monstrosity of a stadium to go with. The location of the stadium was the result of a 5 year battle between multiple cities. They closed Hollywood Park and are building it on that site, and of course we get to foot the bill. 
