Home of the New Orleans
Saints, the Louisiana Superdome is one of the NFL’s biggest stadiums,
but is also the home of the Tulane Green Wave. In the mid 1960’s New
Orleans businessman Dave Dixon envisioned a dome stadium that could
bring a football team to the area. In 1966, his vision became a
reality after much discussion and planning, the Louisiana Legislature
passed a bill that allowed the stadium to be built. After reaching an
agreement to build a stadium, the NFL awarded the area a team, the New
Orleans Saints. Construction began in August of 1971, and was
completed by August 1975. The dome stadium was named the Louisiana
Superdome, because of its massive size. The Superdome covers 13 acres
and is 27 stories tall. From the outside it looks like a massive
spaceship. Opening day for the Saints at the Superdome was on
September 28, 1975. Almost 70,000 multicolored seats in three tiers
circle the entire field at the Superdome. Every seat next to another
one is a different color, making it look like there are more people at
games than there really are. Several video/scoreboards are located
inside the Superdome.
FACTS & FIGURES
-Tenant: Tulane Green Wave -Conference: CUSA -Capacity: 69,082 -Surface: Fieldturf -Opened:
September 1975 -Cost: $134 Million
-Seating Chart
-Tulane Green Wave Sports
During the summer of 1996, the Superdome
underwent $22.8 million of renovations including, a new entrance lobby
and ticket offices, an additional concourse serving the upper level
seats, refurbished ballrooms, additional accommodations for the
disabled, and upgraded safety and security equipment. After the 2002
season the Astroturf playing field was replaced with Fieldturf.
The Superdome hosts numerous other events other
than football. It has hosted baseball and basketball games, trade
shows,
conventions, concerts, and many other events. The Superdome has
hosted six Super Bowls.
During the past several years,
the Saints having been looking at options of possibly building a new
retractable roof stadium. In August 2005, the Superdome was the
shelter for more than 10,000 residents during Hurricane Katrina. The
hurricane sheared away much of the roof's covering and water leaked
into the stadium when it was used as a shelter for thousands of
stranded residents. The Superdome sustained an estimated $140 million
in damage. During the 2005 season, the Tulane Green
Wave played all of their games on the road. The team moved back to the
Superdome the following season.
Superdome
