Minnesota Vikings

Lore & Background

The Vikings have an all-time overall record of , the highest regular season and combined winning percentage among NFL franchises who have not won a Super Bowl, in addition the most playoff runs, division titles, and (tied with the Buffalo Bills) Super Bowl appearances. They also have the most conference championship appearances of non-winning Super Bowl teams, with them being one of four (along with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams) to appear in a conference championship every decade since the 1970s. The team was officially named the Minnesota Vikings on September 27, 1960. The Vikings have won one NFL Championship, in 1969, before the league's merger with the American Football League (AFL) in 1970. Since the merger, the team has qualified for the playoffs 28 times, third-most in the league. The team played in Super Bowls IV, VIII, IX and XI, but failed to win any of them. The Vikings have 15 members in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Reader's Guide

From the team's first season in 1961 to 1981, the team called Metropolitan Stadium in suburban Bloomington home. The Vikings conducted summer training camp at Bemidji State University from 1961 to 1965. In 1966, the team moved their training camp to Minnesota State University in Mankato. The Vikings played their home games at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis from 1982 to 2013. The Vikings played their last game at the Metrodome on December 29, 2013, defeating the Detroit Lions 14–13 to end the season.

Did You Know?

• The Vikings are one of only seven NFL teams to win at least 15 games in a regular season.
• The Vikings have lost in their last six NFC Championship Game appearances, stretching back to 1978.
• The Vikings' first regular-season game was a 37–13 upset of the Chicago Bears on Opening Day 1961.
• Quarterback Fran Tarkenton was traded to the New York Giants on March 7, 1967, and later reacquired on January 27, 1972.