The Minnesota Vikings recently stunned the NFL world by spending $2 million on tickets for their all-important away clash against the Lions. Not only did the spending secure 1,900 extra tickets for their fans, but they also sold them at an extremely steep discount. Naturally, that elicited a genuine, straight-from-the-heart reaction from rookie QB JJ McCarthy.
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Based on JJ McCarthy’s Instagram post, the Michigan alum seemed enamored by the “gangster” move pulled off by the Vikings’ management. He responded with a photo of owners Zygi and Leonard Zilf, captioned “Two headed monsta,” to show his appreciation for the team owners.
Gangsta Alert
JJ McCarthy reacts to the Vikings buying $2 million worth tickets for the Lions match by calling owners Zygi and Leonard – two headed monsters. pic.twitter.com/XcfPgVSlvU
— Burner Boy (@MiraRoadKCChief) January 5, 2025
The genius move spearheaded by the Minnesota Vikings’ owners, the Wilf family, has received positive reactions from all corners of the NFL world — except Detroit. The home team apparently flagged this transaction and called the league. Fortunately for the Vikings fans, it was ruled permissible. But why did the Lions do so?
The clash between the Detroit Lions and the Minnesota Vikings is crucial for both teams, as the winner will clinch the NFC North title and secure a first-round bye in the playoffs. Meanwhile, the loser will have to play an away game as the fifth seed in the NFL Wild Card round.
For a matchup against arch-divisional rivals with such heavy stakes, it’s best to have as many fans in your corner as possible. Officially, the NFL allocates 600 seats to the away team’s fans. With the Minnesota Vikings purchasing 1,900 more at the ticket price of $1,000 each, there will be nearly 2500 Vikings fans ( sold to season-ticket holders) traveling from Minnesota to Detroit.
As beautiful as this move looks on paper, its impact on the outcome is likely to be negligible. For context, Ford Field has a seating capacity of 65,000, meaning nearly 62,500 Lions fans will be booing Sam Darnold & Co. It will be loud. Keeping this in mind, it’s unlikely, or rather illogical, to expect a crowd of 2,500 to outshine one nearly 25 times its size.
But kudos to the Minnesota Vikings ownership for trying their best to level the playing field. Even if the Vikings had $20 million to spend on secondary markets, it’s unlikely that there would be that many Lions faithful willing to resell their tickets.
All things considered, the Vikings did what they could. The real gangster move, in our opinion, by the purple and gold team, was selling these $1000 tickets to fans at rates as low as $200. Moreover, Minnesota’s staff members and players’ families were awarded tickets for the best seats.
According to Vikings spokesperson Jeff Anderson, their efforts had one objective — to help as many fans enjoy this unique and crucial matchup live.
“Given the uniqueness of this game, we wanted to offer our stakeholders — staff, family, season ticket members and team partners — an opportunity to attend,” said Anderson.
It’s stories like these that bring much-needed wholesomeness to the fiercely competitive world of the NFL. Moves like this also add more intrigue and excitement to the fixtures. Safe to say, the Vikings-Lions clash can’t come soon enough!
