If Vikings fans are allowed inside U.S. Bank Stadium for the Sept. 13 opener against the Packers, they will see a less-cluttered sideline.
COVID-19 concerns prompt NFL to remove mascots, cheerleaders from sideline
August 20, 2020 at 5:19AM
Fans will not see purple-clad cheerleaders or Viktor the Viking, the team's mascot, on the field. There will be no sideline reporters or pregame panelists near the benches this season.
Those gameday elements have been removed for all NFL teams in 2020, based on new protocols announced Wednesday by the league.
The Vikings have not yet announced whether fans will be allowed at home games, but warned ticket holders in July that "significantly reduced capacity" was possible.
Several teams, including the Packers and Bears, have said home games would not be open to fans at least in the early weeks of the season. The Seahawks said Wednesday no fans will be at CenturyLink Field for the first three home games, which includes Oct. 11 against the Vikings.
The new protocols also detailed procedures for traveling to road games and tweaked COVID-19 testing based on CDC guidelines regarding reinfection.
Andrew Krammer
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Mike Conley was in Minneapolis, where he sounded the Gjallarhorn at the Vikings game, on Sunday during the robbery.
