Football fans in the North Star State have a good reason to practice their end-zone celebrations; the Vince Lombardi Trophy arrived in Minneapolis on Saturday, and is eagerly awaiting the victors of Super Bowl Lii. The trophy, which was delivered by FedEx, will ultimately go to either the Philadelphia Eagles or the New England Patriots after the two teams clash to determine the National Football League’s 2017 season champion.

The Lombardi Trophy has a long and complicated history, but has yet to make Minneapolis its home; while the Minnesota Vikings played in four Super Bowl games back in the 1970s, the state has never laid claim to the trophy.

That didn’t stop Matt Birk, a former Minnesota Viking who was on-hand for the delivery of the Lombardi Trophy, from highlighting the importance of the Trophy’s arrival.

“After 15 years, to finally be able to hold it was pretty satisfying and gratifying and special,” Birk said, according to KSTP.

The football star also took to his personal account on the popular social media platform Twitter to welcome the Lombardi Trophy as it arrived in Minneapolis.

“Vince- good to see you again. Welcome to Minnesota. Someday you’ll be here to stay,” the former football center tweeted.

Highly revered

The Lombardi Trophy, which was named after Vince Lombardi, the former coach of the Green Bay Packers who led his team to victory in the first two Super Bowl games, is highly revered within the football community.

The end-of-season game is regularly one of the most highly viewed events of the year, with the 2011 game between Green Bay and the Steelers shattering viewing-records at the time and drawing a global audience, according to the New York Post.

Taking place on 4 February in Minneapolis, Superbowl 2018 likely won’t break that record.

The NFL has suffered from serious hits to its ratings over the past season, and ongoing political controversy is likely to shroud the forthcoming game. Highly publicized protest surrounding the national anthem, for instance, has the NFL losing viewers at alarming rates, per Forbes, and years of declining viewership are likely to continue in 2018.

Tuning in

Super Bowl fans eager to see the clash between the Patriots’ Tom Brady and the Eagles’ Nick Foles, a backup quarterback who was recently forced into the limelight, are sure to tune in regardless. Grab your nachos and mark your calendars – the arrival of the Lombardi Trophy shows that gameday is just around the corner.