Minnesota Vikings Takes Fans on an RFID-enabled Voyage

This year, NFL team Minnesota Vikings will be playing at their new home, theU.S. Bank Stadium, located in downtown Minneapolis, and the franchise has been using that opportunity to find new ways in which to excite fans with high-tech entertainment designed to make them feel like they're part of the team. The result of that mission is Vikings Voyage, a 10,000-square-foot interactive exhibition space where fans can catch passes while wearing a virtual reality Vikings helmet, run shuttle drills against a current Vikings player's pace, and hit a tackling sled that measures impact. The space allows fans to track scores and compete against other visitors by means of bracelets containing passive Near Field Communication (NFC) RFID tags.

"The spirit of the new stadium is getting fans as close to the action as we can," says Tanya Dreesen, the Minnesota Vikings' partnership activation and special projects VP. "It's a way to feel like you're in the huddle, even if you're not in the huddle."