View images of the Vikings meeting Chelsea FC as they train at Winter Park for the International Champions Cup against AC Milan at U.S. Bank Stadium on Wednesday Aug. 3.
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — Vikings players became international diplomats on their day off Tuesday when they welcomed Chelsea F.C. to Winter Park.
The soccer squad has spent three days training at the Vikings headquarters to prepare for an International Champions Cup match with A.C. Milan. The match is scheduled for tonight and will be the first sporting contest inside U.S. Bank Stadium.
Linebackers Chad Greenway and Anthony Barr, safety Harrison Smith and kicker Blair Walsh swapped jerseys with Chelsea F.C.'s players and compared differences between the field and the pitch.
"It's very humbling to have a club like this come in, a legendary club that's known worldwide to be training in our backyard at Winter Park," Greenway said.
Greenway had his entire family with him to enjoy the exchange.
Walsh and the Chelsea players compared differences in kicking oblong footballs and spherical soccer balls. They have a mutual respect.
"It's really cool to meet all of these guys, you come out here and see the soccer goals lined up on the field we've been practicing on all year, so it's kind of interesting to see," Walsh said. "These dudes are some of the best in the world at what they do, and we're some of the best in the world at what we do. It's very cool when you have two totally different sports mesh like that."
The Vikings returned to training camp Wednesday to continue prepping for the 2016 season. The first Vikings preseason game at U.S. Bank Stadium is scheduled for Aug. 28, and the first regular-season game is set for Sept. 18.
