Two familiar faces from the University of Minnesota volleyball scene are stepping into the pro spotlight. Former Gophers assistants Pedro Mendes and CC McGraw will guide Minnesota’s first Major League Volleyball franchise, set to debut in January 2027 at Grand Casino Arena in downtown St. Paul. Mendes will serve as both general manager and head coach, with McGraw as his assistant, giving the new team a leadership core rooted in local volleyball culture and recent collegiate success. The hires mark the first big front-office moves for the franchise, which is backed by Minnesota Sports & Entertainment, the group that operates the Wild and manages the arena.
Mendes to build and coach Minnesota’s first MLV squad
Minnesota Sports & Entertainment has handed Pedro Mendes a double assignment: assemble the roster and run the bench as the franchise gears up for its inaugural season. Mendes arrives with recent assistant-coaching experience at Minnesota, a decade-long professional playing career and head-coaching stops overseas. His appointment was announced by Major League Volleyball.
McGraw heads home to join staff
Prior Lake native CC McGraw, a Gophers standout from 2018 to 2022 who went on to coach at Louisville, is returning to Minnesota to join Mendes on the sideline and help tie the pro club to the state’s robust youth and college ranks. “Her integrity and deep knowledge of the game are crucial to building a culture that players trust and feel supported by,” Mendes said in the team announcement. Her hiring underscores a strategy that leans hard on homegrown relationships as the franchise starts from scratch. The move was announced by Major League Volleyball.
Roster blueprint, name reveal and early signings
Mendes and McGraw will spend the coming months assembling a 14–15 player roster that could feature up to four international athletes, and Mendes has said the team already has four players under contract. He told reporters the organization hopes to settle on a name and colors within roughly six weeks and to start rolling out player signings in May, once overseas deals begin to expire. Those timelines and the early signing count were reported by CBS Minnesota.
One arena, two pro volleyball leagues
The new franchise will call Grand Casino Arena home and is majority owned by Wild owner Craig Leipold. The deal is structured to add winter and spring dates to the downtown venue’s calendar as the volleyball season fills in alongside hockey. That ownership and arena arrangement were detailed when the expansion was first unveiled by the Star Tribune.
Minnesota is also set to host a separate professional franchise from League One Volleyball starting in January 2027, which has sparked local debate about whether two brand-new operations can thrive in the same market at the same time. That two-league question, and what it might mean for fans and players, has been explored in coverage by Bring Me The News.
What fans should watch for next
The season is slated to run from January through May 2027, with a roster likely built around recent college standouts plus a select group of international pros. Early staffing moves and the first reported signings point to a franchise that intends to be competitive quickly while crafting a local identity that young Minnesota players can see themselves in. Fans can look for a team-name reveal and visual identity in the coming weeks, followed by more roster announcements as overseas contracts wrap up this spring.
