This month, as we celebrated Mardi Gras — specifically Bacchus Sunday — everyone else in the country was focused on a different event: Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas.
The 2024 Super Bowl was supposed to be in New Orleans, but when the NFL extended the season to 17 games a few years ago that caused the game to move. However, thanks to great planning and foresight by the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation (GNOSF), New Orleans’s winning bid included a clause to account for this change and ensure New Orleans would host the next available Super Bowl. This means Super Bowl LIX will be held in New Orleans on February 9, 2025 — the first time we’ve hosted since 2013.
I say all of this because right now we have one year to prepare — one year to get New Orleans ready to showcase our talents to the world and let everyone know we are, (in the words of New Orleans & Company’s marketing slogan) “Built to Host.”
I have confidence in GNOSF, as well as our tourism organizations and economic partners. I think the bigger question is whether our local government is ready. My answer to that is that it must be. Whatever the mayor’s office and city council must do, they need to start now. They need to have a game plan and assure everyone they are doing what needs to be done. We cannot afford a fumble or interception. We need to score.
The good news is that, thanks to a newly renovated Superdome, the setting will be spectacular. Now we just need everything else to be in order so we can continue earning the praise of so many industry insiders as “the perfect city for a Super Bowl.”
And let’s all hope the Saints can make a run next season and make Super Bowl LIX another home game win for the recordbooks!
Who Dat!
Todd Matherne, CEO and Publisher
Renaissance Publishing
