Vikings in London: The logistics behind 2 international games

Vikings: The logistics behind 2 straight international games

FOX 9 Sports Director Jim Rich is in London as the Minnesota Vikings face the Cleveland Browns on Sunday at Tottenham Hotspur. He spoke with Vikings Director of Team Operations Paul Martin about the amount of planning it took to get the team ready for two straight international games.

LONDON, England - The Minnesota Vikings are making history this week, becoming the first team in NFL history to play international games in consecutive weeks.

The Vikings are embracing the opportunity to expand the game of football, but with it comes a lot of planning. The process started back in the summer. FOX 9 Sports Director Jim Rich is in London for Sunday’s game against the Cleveland Browns, and spoke Wednesday with Vikings Director of Team Operations Paul Martin.

Vikings travel international

The backstory:

Vikings’ staff back in July had about 40 pallets worth of equipment put on a ship and set over to Dublin, Ireland, their first destination. It arrived in September. The goal? Set up a makeshift version of TCO Performance Center where the team could workout, watch film, have meetings and team meals.

Vikings: Go inside the team's equipment room in London

FOX 9 Sports Director Jim Rich is in London as the Minnesota Vikings take on the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. He caught up with Vikings equipment manager Mike Parsons and got an exclusive inside look at the team's equipment room to see how players get ready for an international game.

They had 37,000 pounds of equipment shipped, and the team has 7,000 meals over the course of 11 days between Dublin and London. Martin said the equipment arrived Saturday night and Sunday in London, immediately went through customs and was mostly set up by the time the team arrived.

"I thought it would be crazy and it has been, but thankfully we have a lot of really talented people that are good at what they do. We all worked together on this, and it’s gone about as good as I could’ve hoped to this point," Martin said.

What about players, staff passports?

What we know:

Martin said the process started during the summer to make sure every player and staff member that would be traveling had a valid passport. Martin said every passport is locked in a briefcase-like safe, and players and staff only possess them long enough to get through security and customs. Once cleared, team officials lock them away until they’re needed again.

Martin estimates he’s dealt with thousands of text messages between players and staff to address any problem that comes up, from travel logistics to working out.

Vikings in London

Timeline:

The Vikings will face the Cleveland Browns in London at Tottenham Hotspur. But the team is staying at a hotel about 29 miles away, and about a 90-minute drive with the traffic. The Vikings’ biggest hurdle on the field is getting their body clocks adjusted with the time change.

Thankfully, the Vikings have a bye week after facing the Browns, so they should be more than ready to return home to face the Philadelphia Eagles on Oct. 19.