Vikings’ new stadium still working out kinks

The Minnesota Vikings’ new $1.1 billion stadium has been test-driven by soccer players and musicians, But the biggest test comes Sunday when the football team and its rabid fans finally arrive.

The Minnesota Vikings’ new $1.1 billion stadium has been test-driven by soccer players, a country music superstar and an iconic heavy metal band. But the biggest test for U.S. Bank Stadium comes Sunday when the football team and its rabid fans finally arrive.

Long lines have been the biggest complaint so far. Lines to get in, lines for food and drink, and lines to the women’s bathrooms. Not to mention the crowded concourses packed with fans who were more interested in seeing the sights of the new stadium than finding their seats. Restroom complaints peaked with the heavily female audience for Luke Bryan’s country show Aug. 19; fewer were heard the next night from the heavily male audience for Metallica. The crowds at Vikings games skew male, but not as disproportionately as those two concert crowds, which should help. The packed concourses should be less of an issue after a few games when Vikings season-ticket holders figure out how to find their seats and the novelty of the new venue wears off. Yes, most fans probably will try to enter for the first time through the dramatic pivoting glass doors on the stadium’s west side facing downtown, but they’ll eventually learn which gates are closest to their seats.

Concert-goers panned the acoustics of the new stadium, but it was built for football, not music. And the experience of the inaugural soccer match suggests that the echoes that turned the sound to sludge for Luke Bryan and Metallica could be just the thing for the Vikings. The echoing sound will amp up the roar of the crowd, boosting the energy for the fans and the homefield advantage for the Vikings. The Vikings have predicted that U.S. Bank Stadium will be louder than the legendarily noisy Metrodome. But it’ll be up to the fans to make that prediction come true.

Berry to report

A person familiar with Eric Berry’s plans tells The Associated Press that the All-Pro safety will report to practice Sunday, giving him one preseason game to prepare for the season.

Berry was given the franchise tag early in the offseason but has not signed the deal, which means he could skip all of training camp without being fined. Once he signs the one-year contract, he will make just over $10.8 million, making him the league’s highest-paid safety.