A spokesperson for the Vikings said they had very few complaints. Besides families do have the choice. The comments by church pastors over the Viking game revealed a growing problem of parents having to choose between their family playing sports or attending church services. The concern is over traveling team tournaments on weekends, which includes Sundays. Such conflicts force parents to choose between having their athletic stars attend church or playing basketball games.
Sports usually wins out over going to church.
The Sunday morning scheduling has been discussed at the meetings of the St. Paul District Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran church. A spokesperson for the Minnesota Sports Federation said tournaments are scheduled weekends by sponsors who need to provide a full schedule to make the tournament worthwhile. Parents, of course, can choose church over sports, but that ends up penalizing the athlete. Pastors say the choice unfortunately places the athlete in the middle. Pastors also say scheduling sports contests by non-school groups on Wednesday nights is reducing attendance at confirmation classes.