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MINNEAPOLIS -- At the top of the Vikings shiny, new $1.1 billion football palace, there is a ring of glass separating the seating bowl from the roof that the team and the stadium designers call the clear story.At night, when U.S. Bank Stadium is lit up, the clear story gives the visual impression that the roof is floating. And on sunny mornings, the large windows allow sunlight to flow in from the east, bathing the seats on the other side of the stadium in a yellow glow.The clear story is one of the many calling cards for architects of the stadium -- and one that almost didnt make the cut: With the cost of the project rising, Mortenson Construction told the Vikings that eliminating that particular feature would save the team $800,000.At the time we were over a perceived budget. They said, `Well, wed like to accept that, said John Hutchings, sports principal-in-charge at HKS Sports and Entertainment.We said, `Over our dead body. ... It was a decision that we fought hard to keep. We didnt win all of them, but that was one that was pretty important for the overall look of the stadium.The discussion was one of the countless debates that come with designing, approving and building a stadium of this kind of size and scope.In the end, HKS won that tussle. Vikings owner Mark Wilf pointed to that clear story as a sign of the additional investment the team put into the project to try to achieve the world class designation that the franchise has used to describe it from the stadiums infancy.The first official event is Wednesday, an international soccer exhibition that has sold more than 55,000 tickets.When you weigh those millions of dollars versus the span of a building like this, we wanted to make sure that in five or 10 years this building wouldnt be instantly obsolete. We want this building to last for decades and generations to come, Wilf said.Things like letting in that light, hundreds of decisions like that, our whole team really made sure to implement that vision that the fan experience were to be maintained.There were other points of contention. Some designers preferred to have a scoreboard hanging over the field like the famous giant boards at the home of the Dallas Cowboys.The Vikings wanted to have video boards above the lower bowl in both end zones so that fans didnt have to crane their necks upward to see replays.And the huge glass doors on the west side of the stadium that open to allow fresh air inside the fixed-roof facility were initially proposed to go from the plaza cement up to the very top of the stadium, some 240 feet high.We got the numbers back and they said, `No way can we do that! a smiling Hutchings said. They said, `What would it take to have the biggest ones in the world? We said, well they need to be 100 feet tall.And there they stand now, five doors ranging from 75 feet to 95 feet tall and 55 feet wide.It never became personal, Vikings chief operating officer Kevin Warren said.We had some very tough and tense disagreements. But we always moved forward. At the end of the day, we knew we would get this done and build an incredible building that one day would revolutionize how professional sports franchises handle their buildings and how fans get a chance to watch their teams.In the end, an architectural marvel was born. Sixty percent of the roof is made of a translucent material called ETFE that allows the sun to pour in and create the feel of an outdoor venue.The cramped concourses and scarce bathrooms of the Metrodome are a distant memory, replaced by the open-feel, amenity-loaded stadium that features a giant glass wall looking toward the downtown Minneapolis skyline.The seats are the closest to the field in the NFL and a one-of-a-kind retractable section can be moved to allow baseball to be played indoors.When they showed us this design, we were just blown away, Wilf said.The Vikings first game will be an exhibition against the San Diego Chargers on Aug. 28, with the real curtain raiser coming on Sept. 18 in a Sunday night game against NFC North rival Green Bay.And then, of course, the big show is not far off: The Super Bowl will be held at the stadium on Feb. 4, 2018.More than 200,000 people visited the stadium for an open house that was held last weekend.Initially, the Vikings pledged $477 million toward the project, with the rest coming in public funding. By the end of it, the team contributed an extra $125 million to add the bells and whistles it wanted.This project had its share of pushing and pulling in that respect. But look at this place, said John Wood, senior vice president of Mortenson Construction.When you compare it to some of the NFL facilities being built right now or being planned right now, its a bargain.---Online:AP NFL website: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Shoes Online UK Review .Y. -- Jayna Hefford scored the winning goal Friday as Canada survived a scare with a 4-3 win over Sweden at the Four Nations womens hockey tournament. Shoes UK From China . Luis Suarezs double powered Liverpool to a 4-0 victory over Fulham, and Southampton easily overcame Hull 4-1 to continue the south coast clubs impressive start to the season. Liverpool and Southampton sent Chelsea down to fourth place as the west London club was held to 2-2 at home. https://www.shoesukonline.com/ .C. -- Todd Fiddler scored a hat trick, including the overtime goal, as the Prince George Cougars survived an 8-7 win against the Kamloops Blazers in Western Hockey League play Sunday. Shoes UK Online Store . -- Ty Montgomery had 290 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns, and fifth-ranked Stanford held on to beat No. Wholesale Shoes UK Free Shipping .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final. America is a giant melting pot in myriad ways, and basketball is definitely one of them. Few teams, if any, epitomize that trend as much as the Bradley University mens basketball program. Five Braves players hail from overseas, representing four nations from three continents in a microcosm of the rapidly expanding basketball universe.Ive coached a lot of international guys, but not five on one team, said Bradley coach Brian Wardle. Basketball is a worldwide game now. Kids are playing it all over, and they love coming to the States for the facilities and the academic opportunities. Theyre very gracious and grateful for the opportunity theyve been given.Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye and Luuk van Bree arrived at Bradley last year from England and the Netherlands, respectively. Australia provided the Braves with sophomore Callum Barker and freshman Jayden Hodgson. Koch Bar is a freshman from South Sudan.This diverse collection of talent is a key component of the rebuilding effort engineered by Wardle, who last year took over a program that has enjoyed just one winning season since 2010.Bradley played 10 freshmen and was the youngest team among the 351 NCAA Division I squads in 2015-16. Unsurprisingly, the team took its lumps on the court, finishing with a 5-27 record. This season, the outlook is brighter, although the Braves are one of only four teams in the nation without a senior. Ultimately, Wardle believes the diverse influences in the locker room can counteract the inexperience.I do know it has brought a maturity to our program that we need, Wardle said. Were still not where we need to be in that area. But I think these young men, because theyve been away from home, because theyve been traveling so much, theyve had to deal with things on their own, deal with adversity on their own.With five nonconference games remaining before embarking on their Missouri Valley Conference schedule, the Braves (4-4) already are just one win shy of matching last seasons total.Right now, I wouldnt want to be on any other team in America, said forward Donte Thomas, a junior from Calumet City, Illinois, and the only Bradley player remaining from the pre-Wardle era. All these guys have great attitudes, and Im building a great relationship with all my teammates -- a brotherhood.Although these Braves have a lot to prove, they know that they ultimately want to contend for championships in the MVC, a league that has been dominated by Wichita State in recent years.Well get there, Wardle said. Its an exciting group. We have tremendous young men and great character. Thats fun to go to work with every day.Lautier-Ogunleye (pronounced LOW-tee-ay oh-gun-LAY-yay), known as D-LO to teammates, was born and raised in West London. The child of a French mother and Nigerian father, he played soccer as a youth but eventually grew to appreciate the fact that basketball isnt contested out in cold weather. After deciding to focus on basketball, he enrolled in the sports academy at Harrow High School in Northwest London.By age 16, Lautier-Ogunleye was off to college a couple of hours away at Bristol Academy of Sport, which provided the chance to play against professional teams. He played three years for the Bristol Flyers, including the 2014-15 season in the top-tier British Basketball League. Lautier-Ogunleye has represented England internationally at the U16 and U18 levels and Great Britain as a U20. He was a member of the 2013 U18 squad that became the first English team to defeat Spain.Lautier-Ogunleye considered turning pro at age 17 and tried out for French Pro A club Strasbourg. But his mother, Catherine, was adamant that he would become the first in his family to earn a college degree. After a visit to another American school fell through, he was invited to visit the Bradley campus in Peoria, Illinois, and wound up committing on the spot. Lautier-Ogunleye said he liked everything about the school and that Wardle impressed him as honest and straightforward.I believe hes someone who can get me to the next step, because hes not going to allow me to slide, said Lautier-Ogunleye, who wants to play professionally after college. Hes going to be holding me accountable for everything I do. Thats the only way Im going to become a better person and a better man.Barker, a 6-foot-9 center, and Hodgson, a 6-3 guard, are two members of the growing contingent of Australians coming to America to play college basketball.A Hobart, Tasmania, native, Barker began playing the sport on the backyard hoop his parents had bought for his older sister. He said his height, coupled with a lack of aptitude in Australian rules football and cricket, fueled his pursuit of basketball. He rose through the state competition level and has also represented Australia at the U19 Pacific Championships.Barker got his name into recruiting circles through a scouting agency run by former NBA player Randy Livingston and briefly attended prep school in Massachusetts. Hes still somewhat in awe of the portion sizes at American restaurants, as he once mistook his Applebees appetizer for the entrée. Aside from that, Barker is finding out that despite their various backgrounds, Braves players have a lot more in common than they realized at first.We all go through the same stuff, Barker said. Even though I come from 10,000 miles away, I still have the same experiences as the boys here.Hodgson is a native of Gosford, New South Wales, located about an hour north of Sydney. Conveniently, he already was acquainted with two of his teammates prior to arriving at Bradley, having met Barker at competitions and camps in Australia and having played alongside Bar at prep school in Florida.Hodgson also has represented Austraalia internationally, notably as a member of the U17 team that finished second to the U.ddddddddddddS. at the 2014 FIBA World Championship in Dubai. The Braves staff learned about Hodgson through Adam Caporn, his coach at the Australian Institute of Sport. Bradley was the first school of several Hodgson planned to visit, but he committed before leaving Peoria and skipped the other trips.Ultimately, Hodgson has his sights set on pro basketball and hopefully one day playing for the Boomers in the Olympics.Its definitely a dream to play in the Olympics, Hodgson said. I believe its the biggest stage in basketball, and the biggest accolade you can get is to play for your country. Weve got a lot of talent coming through Australia, so it will be tough. But its definitely a goal of mine.Bar undoubtedly has the most distinctive background of any of the Braves.The 6-foot-10 center is among the youngest of 30-plus siblings, as his mother was the second-youngest of six wives to his late father in South Sudan, where polygamy isnt uncommon. Although the Sudanese region has been fraught with conflict for many years, Bar was fortunate to avoid witnessing any discord firsthand. Bar said his father was a government official and made sure the family was kept safely away from areas of fighting before settling in South Sudan, which was officially formed in 2011.There was a lot of conflict going on, but its not all over the place, said Bar, who wears No. 12 in a nod to Dwight Howard. My experience was good. I went to good schools.He started playing pickup basketball about five years ago and was later discovered by a Sudanese former player, Bil Duany, who played at Eastern Illinois in the mid-2000s. Bil is the younger brother of former Wisconsin player Duany Duany and Kueth Duany, who played at Syracuse.Bar came to the United States three years ago knowing only a bit of conversational English learned from movies. He attended prep school in Florida and immersed himself in basketball. He joined the Indiana Elite AAU team coached by Mark Adams, the father of Bradley assistant Drew Adams. One thing led to another, and Bar found his way to Bradley, where hes majoring in art and loves the fan support.The coaches and staff are doing well to teach me the game, said Bar, who has been the Braves leading rebounder this season. Im still behind, still pretty much [learning] the game.Van Bree (pronounced vohn BRAY) is a 6-9 forward from Helmond, Netherlands, who began playing basketball around age 8 or 9. At 16, he joined a youth development program affiliated with a Dutch pro team. He wanted to play college basketball in the U.S. but didnt have any offers.Rather than jump immediately toward the pro ranks, he attended an academy in the Canary Islands to get his name into the American recruiting pipeline. The coach there, in turn, recommended him to Wardle.Although hes a native Dutch speaker, van Bree began studying English in grade school. Hes majoring in international studies and is undecided about whether he wants to pursue pro basketball after college.Three years ago, I never wouldve thought I would be playing basketball in America, van Bree said. Im just going to take it year by year. I just want to have a great career here at Bradley and get my degree. I think if I just worry about that, Ill have plenty of options after I graduate.Of course, when you assemble a cultural potpourri like Wardle has, there are bound to be some funny moments and things that get lost in translation.Hodgson said he had to dispel some teammates notions about the wildlife Down Under: Kangaroos arent all over Australia. Theyre in the wild, in the bushes -- not in the cities. We dont ride them to school, either.With a laugh, Barker recalls van Bree once having some difficulty ordering food: We were in the student center getting pasta, and he pointed to the menu and asked the lady for spine ache. I looked at him like, What is spine ache? The lady gave him the same look. I said, I dont think they have spine ache. It took him awhile, and eventually he pointed it out -- Its spinach!The Braves dont seem to mind laughing at themselves or each other, which can go a long way toward building a team.The basketball aspect of it, they all bring something unique to the game, said junior swingman JoJo McGlaston, a transfer from Utah State.Added van Bree, At the end of the day, it really doesnt matter where youre from or how youve grown up. Youre all pursuing the same goal, and that creates a bond.Wardle didnt set out to transform his team into a melting pot. He was merely trying to piece together a roster and use his scholarships as wisely as possible, and the availability of online game film has made it easier to recruit international players.That said, Saint Marys College in the San Francisco Bay Area started with one Aussie recruit in Caporn back in 2001. Before long, the Gaels were getting Patty Mills and Matthew Dellavedova from Australia and developing them into NBA mainstays. This year, seven of the 15 players on the Saint Marys roster are from Australia.Could Bradley be building a similar multicultural pipeline of talent to Peoria?If youre a good basketball player, good student and good person, well have an interest in you at Bradley, Wardle said. Its no different from when you have a kid from a certain AAU program. If he has success, youre more likely to get another player out of that AAU program in the future. Its the same in international recruiting. We got Jayden Hodgson because Callum Barker loved Bradley.Thats usually how the dominoes start falling. ' ' '