Formerly known as the Louisiana Superdome, the name of the stadium was changed for the 2011 season when Mercedes-Benz purchased the naming rights to the facility. The Superdome had a lengthy construction process that ended up lasting nearly four full years: ground broke for this facility on August 12, 1971, and it opened on August 3rd, 1975. The initial price of the facility was $134 million and the repairs and renovations to fix the damage caused by hurricane Katrina cost $193 million. After a year, the Superdome reopened on September 25th, 2006.
Located close to the winding Mississippi River, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome is adjacent to the Central Business District and the Central City area. The Superdome is also one of the largest fixed dome structures in the world. This venue is considered a frontrunner for many major sporting events and large gatherings due to it capacity and its location within one of the most treasured cultural gems in the country.
Since 1975, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome has been home to the New Orleans Saints, also serving as the host of the Cotton Bowl.
New Orleans Saints Stadium
The Superdome has always been a loud facility, but when the venue re-opened, opposing players started to notice that the noise created by the fans seemed to multiply. This has created an environment in which the Saints enjoy a considerable home field advantage. Brett Favre noted that for the 2010 NFC Championship game, it was “the most hostile environment I’ve ever been in”, forcing some of the Viking players to wear earplugs.
Since 2010, the Saints home record has reflected this trend, including a pair of perfect seasons at home during the 2011 and 2013 campaigns. Overall, they’ve earned a winning percentage of .700, which translates to a 28-12 record. To compare, their away record is 21-19.
Despite the terrifying ruckus generated by fans, players have voted the surface as the third best artificial field in the league during the 2010 NFLPA survey of playing surface quality, behind MetLife Stadium and Lucas Oil Stadium. This reflects a significant improvement of the playing field, which was previously voted as one of the worst prior to 2008.
Stadium Vitals
Date Opened: August 3rd, 1975
Construction Cost: $134 million
Architect: Edward B Silverstein & Associates; Curtis and David Associated; Nolan, Norman & Nolan
Capacity Attendance: 76,468
Playing Surface: UBU-Intensity Series S5-M Synthetic Turf
Previous New Orleans Saints Stadiums
Tulane Stadium; Tiger Stadium; Alamodome; Giants Stadium
Other Major Events
Super Bowl XLVII
On February 3rd, the Mercedes-Benz Superdome welcomed the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens for Super Bowl XLVII, which marked the first time that a pair of brothers were head coaches of opposing teams. The event was one of the more entertaining Super Bowls in history, including a power outage during the third quarter and San Francisco losing by a field goal after mounting a huge second half comeback.
NCAA Final Four
The Superdome has hosted the NCAA March Madness Final Four five times sine 1982. The most recent took place in 2012, with Kentucky and future New Orleans Pelicans star Anthony Davis winning it all – including a most outstanding player nod for the emerging superstar.
WrestleMania XXX
The thirtieth WrestleMania took over the Superdome on April 6th, 2014, attracting 75,167 fans. This was the WrestleMania in which Brock Lesner ended The Undertaker’s long winning streak at WrestleMania events.