2028 NFL Draft Awarded to Vikings, Minnesota to Host After Approval from NFL Owners

The NFL will be taking the 2028 draft to Minneapolis.

NFL owners voted to approve the measure on Tuesday at meetings in Orlando, Florida.

After the 2026 draft in Pittsburgh concluded, the Vikings posted how the team and its fans are "ready" to grab the lead at some point down the road:

ESPN's Kevin Seifert and Sports Business Journal's Ben Fischer both reported at the time that Minneapolis had the inside track for 2028. That came days after Minnesota Sports and Events submitted its official bid to the NFL.

One idea is to have the draft's major action at U.S. Bank Stadium, and TCO Performance Center in Eagan, Minnesota, could be an auxiliary site. Matt Meunier, executive vice president for business development and tourism at Minnesota Sports and Events, laid out the broad vision:

"Flag football, youth football is going to continue to be more prominent as it relates to the NFL and leaning into 2028 and the L.A. [Olympic] Games, so there's potential to stage some youth football and community legacy events out at TCO Performance Center, but in addition to that, every event Minnesota Sports and Events hosts, we're really intentional about staging events throughout the region and not just downtown [Minneapolis]."

New York City was once the longtime host for the NFL draft. The league took the show on the road starting in 2015 with Grant Park in Chicago. That has continued in the ensuing years.

The 2027 NFL draft will unfold at the National Mall in Washington, D.C.