The first new stadium in the Big Ten Football conference since 1960, TCF Bank Stadium offers many of the amenities fans have come to expect at an National Football League stadium.
Completed in time for the 2009 football season, the University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium offers a huge video board, club seating and numerous suites. The team itself will enjoy a massive locker room shaped like a football.
In 2009, the Golden Gophers played their first game at TCF Bank Stadium, a 20-13 win against Air Force Academy. Minnesota previously played at the Metrodome.
Design
Construction began in July 2007 and 1.3-million work hours later the stadium was completed in July 2009. The university began to explore options for a new stadium in 2003 before the school's board approved the design in January 2007.
Designed as an open-air, horseshoe-shaped bowl, the stadium salutes a previous home of Minnesota, Memorial Stadium, where the Gophers played until 1981. The brick façade and arches are similar to Memorial.
Populous, formerly HOK Sport, served as the primary architect, while Mortensen Construction served as general contractor. The stadium is oriented to include views of downtown Minneapolis.
The stadium is attempting to become the first collegiate stadium certified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.
Financing
With total cost of the stadium at $288.5-million, the university has raised more than $86-million as it works to cover 52% of the stadium’s costs. The state will cover the other 48% of costs ($137.2-million).
The University of Minnesota has enjoyed success rallying local sponsorship agreements to help raise its portion of the financing. In March 2005, TCF Bank announced a $35-million, 25-year corporate sponsorship for a new stadium. The deal provides exclusive naming rights.
Other major corporate sponsors and donors include a $10-million gift from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC), a $2.5-million sponsorship agreement with Dairy Queen, $2.5-million in support from Best Buy, and a $2-million gift from Target.
Amenities
The East end zone videoboard is college football’s third-largest. Designed and built by Daktronics, the videoboard is 48 feet high and 108 feet wide. The board boasts four-million HD-16 light-emitting diode (LED) video display technology. Only Texas and Mississippi State have larger boards.
The playing surface is FieldTurf and covers more than 92,000 square feet. The stadium has seating for 50,805 spectators.
The stadium should help the team attract players. The Gopher Football Home Suite includes the coaches’ locker room, training room, equipment room, post-game interview room, and recruiting room. Shaped like a football, the home team’s locker room is 60 yards long and 25 yards wide and includes 120 lockers.
Fans who purchase premium seats will have access to the DQ Club, which features 14 flat screen televisions, a private bar, and concessions. There are 37 premium suites, 57 loge boxes, 259 seats in the indoor club and 1,250 seats in the outdoor club at TCF Bank Stadium.
The stadium also includes a hall of fame.