Super Bowl 2013 is upon us, and this year, the city of New Orleans plays host to the biggest national sporting event of the year. Sports fans, media, celebrities, and thousands upon thousands of other visitors will flock to the city over the coming weeks to prepare and celebrate the culmination of the 2012-2013 football season.
The teams are set. The Baltimore Ravens will be facing the San Francisco 49ers, who happen to be a longtime rival of the Saints since a time when both teams were in the same division. Fans of both teams will come down for the game with tickets and/or jerseys in hand, and New Orleans will welcome them with open arms, despite past rivalries and dashed hopes of having the Saints in the Superdome Super Bowl (New Orleanians will smile through gritted teeth when Commissioner Goodell comes to town).
Having Super Bowl 2013 in town with so many people and events is very similar to Mardi Gras—or wait, it is Mardi Gras. This year, the big second week of Mardi Gras (preceding Lundi and Mardi Gras day) is the weekend after the Super Bowl, which would normally make the first week of parades the weekend that the Super Bowl will be in town. But, because of all the commotion and festivities, the city pushed forward that first weekend of parades to last weekend to accommodate.
Mardi Gras and Super Bowl 2013 over three weekends? It’s going to be great to see how the city fares after this busy season. Sure, the streets, restaurants, bars, and venues will be overcrowded, and lines and waits will be long everywhere. But what’s most important to the city—besides showing its locals and visitors a great time—is the financial benefits that New Orleans will see from these major festivities while in the national spotlight. Local commercial and service industry folk know what a cash cow these three weeks will be, and the visitor dollars will pour into the city—a city that still has room for growth and plenty to rebuild.
There’s a Super Bowl in the Superdome this year, and, like anything else, New Orleans is gonna celebrate it in a big and flashy way. Come on down for the party, and stay through Mardi Gras!
