Caesars Superdome

• 1. One of These, Only Bigger

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  Louisiana Governor John McKeithen walked into Houston's Astrodome in 1966 and started planning the Caesars Superdome. He turned to those beside him and said, "I want one of these, only bigger." That demand, made on a tour of a rival city's stadium, set in motion the construction of the largest fixed domed structure on earth.

  What would it cost to build something of that scale, and what would happen when the costs far exceeded every projection? What would the building witness over five decades of American sports, politics, and music? And what would a stadium of that size become when a hurricane found the city around it?

  The bonds financing its construction passed on the 8th of November 1966. That date fell just seven days after NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle had awarded New Orleans its 25th professional football franchise.

• 2. Steel and Ambition

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  David Dixon, a New Orleans businessman who would later found the United States Football League in the 1980s, conceived the Superdome. He was trying to bring the NFL to his city. The league's condition was unambiguous: without a domed stadium, New Orleans would never receive a franchise. Dixon secured the governor's backing, and the state approved the project. Blount International of Montgomery, Alabama, was selected to build the structure. The stadium was designed for football, baseball, and basketball alike. Moveable field-level stands and metal-covered dirt areas would accommodate each sport in turn. Dixon even imagined the playing surface as white synthetic turf.

  The original projected cost was $46 million. Political delays pushed the groundbreaking to the 11th of August 1971, years past the original schedule. Then the 1973 oil crisis drove transportation costs sharply upward. By the time the dome opened in 1975, the final bill had reached $165 million. State representative Elward Thomas Brady Jr. of Terrebonne Parish investigated possible financial irregularities during construction, though the project moved forward regardless.

  The finished structure sits on 70 acres of land near the former Girod Street Cemetery. Its steel frame spans 13 acres, and the dome above measures 680 feet in diameter. The lamellar multi-ringed frame rises to 273 feet, enclosing 125 million cubic feet of interior space. Monsanto, which had pioneered the world's first artificial playing surface under the AstroTurf name, made a surface specifically for the dome. They named it "Mardi Grass."

  Norman J. Kientz, a New Orleanian, built a scale model of the dome from 2,697 pennies as construction progressed. In April 1974, he donated the so-called penny model to the Superdome Board of Commissioners. The model later traveled to the Philadelphia Bicentennial '76 exhibition.

  When the Louisiana Superdome held its first regular-season game on the 28th of September 1975, the New Orleans Saints lost to the Cincinnati Bengals 21-0. On that same day, Tulane Stadium, the Saints' original home, was condemned for demolition.

• 3. Shelter of Last Resort

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  On the 29th of August 2005, Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans. The Superdome served the role assigned to it in the city's emergency plans: a shelter of last resort for those who could not evacuate. High winds tore away a large section of the dome's outer covering, exposing the concrete beneath. Those photographs spread instantly and became defining images of the disaster.

  By August 31, three deaths had occurred inside the dome. Two victims were elderly medical patients; one man was believed to have jumped from the upper-level seats. Unconfirmed reports of rape, drug dealing, gang activity, and violent assault circulated during those days. A National Guardsman was shot in the dark by an assailant inside the dome. The Guard erected barbed wire barricades to separate themselves from the general population. On September 11, New Orleans Police Superintendent Eddie Compass reported no confirmed sexual assaults.

  United States Navy sniper Chris Kyle later claimed that he and one other sniper climbed to the dome's roof during the storm. He said they killed 30 armed looters. The story appeared in several publications, including the New Yorker, relayed by Kyle to other military personnel. The claim has never been independently verified. No evidence of dozens of sniper victims emerged, and commentators observed that 30 deaths in that setting could not have gone unnoticed.

  The storm left $185 million in damage to the building. FEMA contributed $115 million toward repairs, the state of Louisiana spent $13 million, and the NFL added $15 million. The Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District refinanced a bond package to raise the remaining $41 million. The dome reopened on the 25th of September 2006, for the Saints' first home game since Katrina. A free outdoor concert by the Goo Goo Dolls preceded the game. Inside the stadium, U2 and Green Day performed a cover of the Skids' song "The Saints Are Coming." President George W. Bush conducted the coin toss. The game drew 70,003 fans and aired to what was then ESPN's largest-ever television audience. The Saints won 23-3.

  On the 27th of July 2012, a statue titled Rebirth was unveiled at a plaza beside the Superdome. The work depicts one specific play from the reopening game: Steve Gleason's block of a Michael Koenen punt. The Saints recovered it for a touchdown in the first quarter.

• 4. Eight Super Bowls

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  Super Bowl XII, played on the 15th of January 1978, was the first professional football championship hosted by the Superdome. It was also the first Super Bowl held in prime time. No other stadium has hosted more Super Bowls. The Superdome's eighth was Super Bowl LIX in 2025.

  Before the Vikings' opening game of the 2010 NFL season, Brett Favre recalled the previous year's playoff loss to the Saints at the dome. "That was, by far, the most hostile environment I've ever been in," Favre said. "You couldn't hear anything." During that earlier playoff game, some Vikings players had chosen to wear earplugs, the first time that season they had done so.

  On the 20th of January 2019, the Superdome hosted the NFC Championship Game between the Los Angeles Rams and the New Orleans Saints. A pass interference call on Rams cornerback Nickell Robey-Coleman, who hit Saints receiver Tommylee Lewis, went uncalled. The Saints lost in overtime. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell publicly apologized for the missed call, and Robey-Coleman was fined for the hit. Lawsuits followed, and the league changed its replay rules to make pass interference calls reviewable.

  In November 2019, the Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District approved a $450 million renovation plan for the dome. The renovation, designed by Trahan Architects under Victor F. "Trey" Trahan III, included new atriums, improved concourses, and field-level end zone boxes. Work began in January 2020 and was completed in multiple phases to ready the venue for Super Bowl LIX in early 2025.

• 5. Rings and Records

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  On the 15th of September 1978, Muhammad Ali beat Leon Spinks at the Superdome to win the world heavyweight title for the third time. The crowd numbered 65,000. It was Ali's last professional win. On the 25th of November 1980, the dome hosted Leonard-Durán II, the fight that became known as No Más. Sugar Ray Leonard defeated Roberto Durán to regain the WBC Welterweight Championship. In the eighth round, Durán turned away from Leonard, faced the referee, and quit by saying "No más," Spanish for "No more."

  In 1982, the Superdome hosted its first NCAA Men's Final Four, featuring a championship game between the University of North Carolina and Georgetown University. The game had 15 lead changes before a young Michael Jordan hit the winning shot to give North Carolina the lead for good. Many regard it as among the greatest college basketball games ever played. It also introduced Jordan to a national audience. The Superdome hosted five more Final Fours after that first: in 1987, 1993, 2003, 2012, and 2022.

  The New Orleans Jazz called the Superdome home from 1975 to 1979. In 1977, the team set what was then an NBA single-game attendance record. That game drew 35,077 fans and matched Pete "Pistol Pete" Maravich against Julius Erving of the Philadelphia 76ers, both future Hall of Famers.

  At the 1995 U.S. Gymnastics National Championships, held at the Superdome, Dominique Moceanu became the youngest Women's All-Around National Champion in United States history. She was 13 years old, and that record has not been broken.

  The first state championship high school football game at the Superdome matched New Orleans Catholic League rivals St. Augustine and Jesuit on the 15th of December 1978. St. Augustine won 13-7 in front of more than 42,000 fans. The Louisiana High School Athletic Association has organized its annual prep championship games there since 1981.

• 6. The Stage for Everything

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  On the 13th of July 1978, the Rolling Stones played the Superdome before 80,173 fans, with Van Halen opening. The concert grossed $1,060,000. Since 1995, the Essence Music Festival has made the Superdome its home. It moved to Houston in 2006 during Katrina repairs and was cancelled outright in 2020 due to COVID-19. Beyoncé's Renaissance World Tour performance at the Superdome on the 27th of September 2023, drew 49,265 fans and grossed $10,802,708.

  In 1987, Pope John Paul II addressed 80,000 children at the stadium. The following year, the 1988 Republican National Convention gathered at the Superdome. The convention nominated then-Vice President George H.W. Bush for president and Senator Dan Quayle of Indiana for vice president. In June 1996, Disney's 34th animated feature, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, held its world premiere at the Superdome. More than 65,000 people attended.

  WrestleMania XXX on the 6th of April 2014, produced a result that reverberated through professional wrestling. Brock Lesnar defeated the Undertaker, ending the Undertaker's long unbeaten streak at the event. In the main event, Daniel Bryan defeated Randy Orton and Batista to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

  Since 1981, the Krewe of Endymion has held its annual Mardi Gras ball and concert at the Superdome. The event traditionally follows the krewe's parade through the city.

  The Savannah Bananas' 2026 Banana Ball World Tour sold out the Superdome two nights running. Both performances set a Superdome attendance record for events on consecutive nights.