Frequently Asked Questions

A person bringing a pet or other animal onto the NSC campus shall keep the animal under confinement or direct control at all times. Leads or leashes used to control animals may not be more than six feet long.

A person shall remove waste left by an animal under the person’s care and control and shall dispose of the waste only in an appropriate waste receptacle.

A person who brings an animal onto the NSC campus may not permit the animal to remain unattended or create a disturbance or a hazard. Ball throwing and retrieving activities are not allowed.

Pets are not allowed in the following NSC spaces:

• Inside buildings, including the Sport Expo Center, Welcome Center, NSC Super Rink, Sports Hall, M Health Fairview Dome, or inside Centerview Elementary School.
• Victory Links Golf Course
• In the water of an NSC retention pond or drainage channel.

Dogs that qualify as service animals under guidelines established by the Americans with Disabilities Act are allowed in all appropriate locations on the NSC campus.

National Sports Center policy on non-commercial drone usage on the NSC campus.

All drone usage must be approved by the event or program director, preferably well ahead of the event. If a drone user flies without prior approval, the pilot will be asked to land the drone and fulfill the following requirements.

Technical requirements:

• Be flying a drone that is FAA registered, and must provide FAA registration number and aircraft serial number.
• Since the NSC campus is within five miles of the Anoka County Airport (class G airspace,) user provide prior notification to the airport and air traffic control tower.
• Verify coverage of at least $1 million liability insurance. Homeowners insurance may provide coverage, but applicant should contact your insurance company to verify. Stand-alone liability coverage specific to drone use is available at a reasonable cost. For example, a $75 annual membership in the Academy of Model Aeronautics comes with $2.5 million of personal liability coverage. (http://www.modelaircraft.org/)
• If the applicant is seeking to fly a drone at a program or event at the NSC that is operated by an outside party (rental events), the applicant must obtain approval from both the event/program owner and the NSC.

Upon approval, the pilot must abide by all FAA-recommended safety guidelines, including:

• All flight 400 feet or lower, and must always give way to manned aircraft.
• Adhere to all federal, state, and local laws.
• No flying over crowds, including USA CUP Opening Ceremonies.
• Must stay to NSC property.

The NSC also enforces the following flight rules for outdoor sports events:

• Drone video cannot be used for in-game coaching purposes, i.e. drone video may not be used for halftime coaching.
• Drones must be flown at a height that guarantees they do not interfere with game action.
• The game referee has the full discretion to ground a drone that he/she believes to be posing a safety hazard.

These policies apply to non-commercial drone usage. Commercial drone photographers must fulfill all these requirements, but also must obtain prior written approval from the NSC.

The original complex opened in 1990. The facility was built by the State of Minnesota, but is operated by a non-profit corporation, the National Sports Center Foundation (NSCF). The NSCF operates the facility on a self-supporting basis. State funds were used to build the facility, and periodically the state has provided funds for capital improvements, but no state operating subsidy is provided. The original state investment in 1990 was $14.7 million, and to date the state investment totals $33.1 million. The NSC has raised a total of $40.6 million in non-state investment. The majority of that total comes from partners who invested in the Super Rink.

Since opening its doors, the NSC has hosted approximately 54 million visitors. In 2017, over 4 million people visited, making it Minnesota’s most visited sports facility.

No, the NSC has evolved and grown since its opening. The original complex had 24 soccer fields, the velodrome, residence hall, stadium and sports hall. By 1994, the NSC had developed over 50 fields by purchasing land north of 105th Avenue. The Super Rink opened in October of 1998 and was expanded in 2006. Victory Links Golf Course was completed in phases between 2000-2004. The Welcome Center opened in April 2005 and the Sport Expo Center was added in 2013. Currently the NSC offers 50 outdoor multi-used fields. Two fields (in the stadium) are artificial turf. All others are natural grass. Four are lighted.

The original four-sheet Super Rink opened in 1998 and was funded by a cooperative of eight local governmental partners along with the Minnesota Amateur Sports Commission (MASC). The partners include the cities of Arden Hills, Blaine, Coon Rapids, Mounds View, New Brighton, Shoreview, as well as Ramsey and Anoka Counties. Total construction cost was $11 million.

In 2006, four additional sheets of ice were added and new partners were brought in to help fund the construction — Blaine and Centennial Youth Hockey, Bethel University and the Herb Brooks Foundation.

Victory Links Golf Course had $3 million of the $10 million cost paid for by the state. The rest was raised through private funds and in-kind sponsorship.

The Welcome Center was built by the state as part of the bonding bill in 2003.

The Sport Expo Center was opened in 2013. It was self-funded by the National Sports Center.

In the most recent calculation done using the Destinations International economic impact event calculator, the NSC produced over $83 million in economic impact annually, and $898,000 in annual local taxes. This computation only counts tourism spending, i.e. customers who stay overnight.