Tag: spectators

Saints scaling back Superdome attendance limits due to COVID-19

The New Orleans Saints have been forced to scale back attendance limits at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome due to a surge in COVID-19 numbers.

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A continued surge in positive coronavirus cases has forced the New Orleans Saints to backtrack on their attendance limits for home games at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, with the head of the New Orleans Health Department, Dr. Jennifer Avegno, recommending that the venue be limited to 4% of its total capacity — totaling no more than 3,000 fans. The neighboring New Orleans Pelicans are being held to the same standard, with an audience of just 750 expected for their Dec. 27 home opener at the Smoothie King Center.

It’s a step back from the Saints’ last home game, which hosted 6,000 spectators for Nov. 22’s matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. The team was working with a phased plan expanding attendance figures up to 15,000 for upcoming kickoffs on Dec. 20 (against the Kansas City Chiefs) and Dec. 25 (versus the Minnesota Vikings), but at this point they’ll be scaling back as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to expand nationally.

The Saints are hopeful that they will be allowed to welcome larger numbers into the Superdome for January’s playoffs, but that remains to be seen. It’s just another sacrifice we’ll have to make so long as the positive test rate remains too high.

Other NFL teams are giving up significantly more. The San Francisco 49ers had to move operations to Arizona just to continue working, practicing, and playing games as local officials in the Bay Area take greater action against the spread of infections. While vaccinations are on the horizon, it doesn’t appear that the 2020 season will resume normalcy before the pandemic can be better controlled.

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Saints, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell reach agreement to allow fans at Superdome

The New Orleans Saints reached a compromise with Mayor LaToya Cantrell to begin readmitting fans to the Superdome amid the COVID-19 pandemic

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After several days of negotiations and a maneuver exploring a temporary move to LSU’s Tiger Stadium, the New Orleans Saints reached an agreement with Mayor LaToya Cantrell to roll out a phased spectator policy for the remaining Saints home games at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome this year.

Cantrell’s office had been reluctant to give the Saints a green light to admit large crowds of fans to the Superdome amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but now they’ll get an opportunity to attempt doing that safely.

For starters, just 3,000 Saints season-ticket holders will be eligible for Sunday’s matchup with the Carolina Panthers. if all goes well, the plan is for that to scale up over the rest of the season. Here’s how the Saints outlined things in a statement:

  • Oct. 25 vs. Carolina Panthers: 3,000 fans
  • Nov. 15 vs. San Francisco 49ers: 6,000
  • Nov. 22 vs. Atlanta Falcons: 6,000
  • Dec. 20 vs. Kansas City Chiefs: 15,000
  • Dec. 25 vs. Minnesota Vikings: 15,000

Described as a “phased and deliberate pilot approach” in a statement from the team, this compromise will at least allow some members of the Who Dat Nation to make their voices heard inside the Superdome. It’s hardly the same as the 70,000-strong crowd typically packing the stands, but it’s a step up from the 750 or so family members of players, coaches, and staffers that previously gathered in New Orleans.

So: if the Saints can only bring in the loudest 3,000 Saints fans possible, who would you pick?

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Saints to welcome 750 family members of players, coaches, and staff vs. Packers

The New Orleans Saints will have about 750 spectators in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome for their Week 3 night game with the Green Bay Packers.

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About 750 family members of New Orleans Saints players, coaches, and support staff will be in attendance at Sunday night’s game with the Green Bay Packers, the team announced. This follows their season opener with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a road game at the Las Vegas Raiders, neither of which involved a live audience.

The Saints characterized this as a trial run of their health and safety procedures for spectators amid the COVID-19 pandemic, explaining in a statement:

This is a strict test of our health and safety protocols that we have been working on with ASM Global, local and national health experts and city and state governmental leadership, including Governor John Bel Edwards and Mayor Latoya Cantrell, both of which are aware and have approved this safety test.

These protocols include health screenings, mobile ticketing, social distancing and other health and safety enhancements. Face masks will be required for all those attending. This is open only to immediate family, allowing us to test our procedures while allowing us to have a firm handle on who is attending for the purposes of safety and tracing.

This also follows a $100,000 fine for Saints coach Sean Payton and a $250,000 penalty to the team after Payton didn’t keep his face mask up during last week’s Raiders game, which violated NFL policy (Las Vegas coach Jon Gruden and his team were issued the same fines for also not following protocol). While Payton has already recovered from the coronavirus and begun donating antibodies to help others, it’s still important for everyone to follow the rules here.

So the Saints will be hosting just over 10.7% of the Superdome’s maximum occupancy against Green Bay as a test of their own procedures. If all goes well, they could be approved to welcome fans to future games in greater numbers; the next Saints home game on the schedule is an Oct. 12 kickoff on “Monday Night Football” with the Los Angeles Chargers.

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