41st Annual
Vikingland
Band Festival
Parade Marching Championship
Sunday, June 29, 2025
1:30 PM
Alexandria, Minnesota
The Midwest's finest high school marching bands gather in
Alexandria for the Vikingland Band Festival parade marching championship. Summer parade bands are
at their peak in late June and they pull out all the stops as they perform on the city’s extra-wide main street.
Eight different bands have claimed the Grand Champion title in the Festival's 40-year history. Join us
to see who rises to the top in 2025!
Future Dates:
June 29, 2025
June 28, 2026
June 27, 2027
Always the last Sunday
in June
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2025 PARADE RESULTS
Excellent music and entertaining shows delighted the thousands of fans who gathered under warm summer skies to cheer for the marching bands in
the 41st Annual Vikingland Band Festival. Waconia H.S. rose to the top with a score of 87.3 for its show titled "In Bloom," earning the Class
4A Champion title and claiming its seventh Grand Champion title, its first overall win since 2022. Cotter H.S. from Winona claimed the
People's Choice award for a third consecutive year, with its program "Once, We Were Dreamers." Litchfield H.S. placed second overall with
87.0 and earned the Class 3A Champion title. Rounding out the top 5 bands were 728 Cadets, Bemidji, and Champlin Park. Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg
earned the Class Champion title for 1A, and Milaca earned the Class Champion title for 2A. Congrats to all the bands for tremendous performances!
View complete 2025 results »
GRAND MARSHAL ANNOUNCED
The Red Willow Arts Coalition (RWAC), represented by program director and board president Chuck and Mandy Wencl, has been named grand marshal of the 2025 Vikingland Band Festival!
RWAC brings so much joy to Alexandria with its fantastic summer concert series every Thursday night on the courthouse lawn. Their dedication to enriching our community through music is truly commendable.
$1,000 SCHOLARSHIP
Established in 2023, Alexandria's Vikingland Band Festival will present a $1,000.00 scholarship to a senior student pursuing a degree in education.
Band directors were given application details. This year's recipient will be announced during the awards ceremony following the parade.
PEOPLE'S CHOICE VOTING
New for 2025, spectators are invited to cast a vote for their favorite band through online voting! In prior years, paper ballots were randomly
distributed along the route. This year, any spectator is invited to scan a QR code to access the ballot. Which band did you enjoy the most?
Whether it was the music, the colorful presentation or excellent delivery of their show theme ... we invite you to cast your vote to
applaud the efforts of the hard-working band students. On parade day, look for signs with a People's Choice QR code ... they'll be posted in
several places along the route. Votes will be accepted as valid starting when the final band exits the judging zone, and will continue for at
least 15 minutes. One vote per device.
PARADE REVIEWING STAND SEATS
No need to bring your lawn chair or arrive extra early to reserve a spot! Ticketed seating is available in prime viewing areas along the parade route.
Every band will perform in front of the seating areas. As of June 26: All tickets for bleacher and tent seats are sold out. There is still plenty of free seating along the 1-mile parade route!
2024 PHOTO GALLERY
Relive the excitement of the 2024 Vikingland Band Festival with a gallery of more than 100 photos! View the 2024 photo gallery featuring images of every band.
VIDEO MEMORIES!
To celebrate the Festival's 40th year, Marching.com is creating a "Vikingland Band Festival Favorites" playlist on YouTube! Expect some good sharp clips from recent years ... and some grainy old stuff captured from dusty VHS tapes! Subscribe to the YouTube channel so you don't miss any of the highlights.
View and Subscribe to the MarchingDotCom YouTube Channel »
PAST RESULTS
Did you know that 95 different bands have appeared in the Vikingland Band Festival since its inception in 1985? Browse the Festival archives to access scores and participants from previous Festivals.
DID YOU KNOW...?
Alexandria is the only band to appear in every Vikingland Band Festival, but many bands have a long history performing in the festival.
Including 2024 appearances, these bands have appeared at least 15 times: Alexandria (40), Fergus Falls (37), Waconia (36), Winona Cotter (35), Henry Sibley/Two Rivers (33), Mankato Lancers (32), Bertha-Hewitt (31), Long Prairie (27), Park Center (27),
Sauk Rapids (26), St. Cloud All-City (24), Litchfield (22), Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg (21), Champlin Park (20), Albany (20), Sartell (19), New York Mills (18), Osseo (18), 728 Cadets (16), Albert Lea (16), Milaca (15).
Sixteen different bands have been named People's Choice since we launched the award in 1989, and the Mankato Lancers and Waconia have
each won it a record seven times! Previous People's Choice award winners:
• 2023-24 Winona Cotter
• 2022 Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg
• 2021 No awards - festival style ratings
• 2020 No awards - virtual event
• 2019 Dassel-Cokato
• 2018 Waconia
• 2017 728 Cadets
• 2016 Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg
• 2015 728 Cadets
• 2014 Waconia
• 2013 Mankato Lancers
• 2012 728 Cadets
• 2011 Bemidji
• 2010 Mankato Lancers
• 2007-08-09 Waconia
• 2006 The Patriots
• 2004-05 Waconia
• 2000-01-02-03 Mankato Lancers
• 1999 Albert Lea
• 1998 Champlin Park
• 1997 Fergus Falls
• 1996 Long Prairie
• 1994-95 Irondale
• 1993 Mankato Lancers
• 1991-92 New Richmond, WI
• 1990 Henry Sibley
• 1989 Hibbing
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Festival Scenes: View photo galleries »
FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK
 Stay informed of last-minute updates, news and Festival history. "Like" the Vikingland Band Festival on Facebook.
EXPERIENCE THE FESTIVAL IN PERSON
Join the thousands of spectators and performers for this spectacular event.
Look here for the parade route and maps of Alexandria. More »
2025 PLATINUM SPONSORS
GOLD SPONSORS
Aagard
Alexandria Elks Lodge #1685
Alomere Health
Central Lakes Orthodontics
Coldwell Banker Crown Realtors
REA
Rotary Club of Alexandria
SILVER SPONSORS
American Solutions for Business
Eckroth Music
Elden's Fresh Foods
Glenwood State Bank
Heartland Orthopedic Specialists
ITW Heartland
Juettner Motors
Martinson Insurance Agency
McDonald's
Minnesota Eye Institute
Sanford Health
Steinbring Motorcoach
Viking Bank
Viking Garage Door Co.
Widseth
FRIENDS OF THE FESTIVAL
Alexandria Downtown Merchants
Bell Bank
Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association
IN-KIND SPONSORS
Alexandria Area Robotics
Alexandria Golf Cars
Alexandria Park Department
Alexandria Police Department
Alexandria Street Department
Banners.com
Bell Bank
City of Alexandria
Databae Systems
Douglas County Sheriff's Posse
Hilltop Lumber
HPS Rental
KXRA Radio
Livewire Entertainment Media Services, LLC
Marching.com
Marine Corps League Runestone Detachment #1409
North Ambulance
North Star Academy
RG Realty
US Bank
West Central Sanitation
Winning Edge Graphics
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