NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - The chances of New Orleans landing the 2031 Super Bowl took a hit this week, as both the city and the state missed a critical NFL deadline to submit their official bid.
Officials had a one-week window to finalize and submit a proposal to host the game, but the clock ran out without the paperwork being filed. At the center of the delay is the still-unfinished lease agreement between the state of Louisiana and the New Orleans Saints for the Caesars Superdome.
The current lease expires in 2030. The proposed extension would keep the Saints in the Dome through 2055. Until that agreement is finalized, the NFL is unlikely to seriously consider New Orleans for another Super Bowl.
Sports analyst and NOLA.com contributor Jeff Duncan said the delay isn’t cause for panic—yet.
“Yeah, look, there’s two reasons for that,” Duncan said. “Mainly, this is a very complicated deal. These deals have multi-layers to them, and they’re really talking about hundreds of millions of dollars in the deal. So everyone’s just doing their due diligence, making sure every T is crossed, every I is dotted.”
He added that the nature of the parties involved has also slowed negotiations.
“And then the other factor here is you’ve got two sides, one that really don’t like to lose,” Duncan said. “The NFL and the New Orleans Saints very rarely lose in negotiation. And Jeff Landry, as governor, as we’ve seen so far in his term, doesn’t like to lose very often. So you’ve got two sides kind of dug in, trying to get the best deal for each other. So everyone comes away with a win-win. That’s why this deal’s taken so long and why it’s become so complicated.”
Despite the missed deadline, Duncan believes New Orleans still has a strong shot at hosting the big game in the future, especially with Saints owner Gayle Benson reportedly playing a key role in negotiations.
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