Yesterday was a great day for Who Dat Nation. The new deal between the state of Louisiana and the New Orleans Saints appears to be pure awesomeness for everyone involved. Tom Benson gets paid and scores a long term deal, the State saves money in the long run, fans have the satisfaction of knowing their team is here to stay and the taxpayers don't have to come out of pocket anymore.
Yup, sounds like a winner to me. It almost too good to be true. This is big business. Someone has to be getting screwed, don't they? This never happens. I was once given a pretty good piece of advice regarding business and the art of making a deal. When doing so, make sure to look around the room and point out the schmuck who is gettin' screwed in the deal. If you can't find him...that means you're probably the schmuck. I can't find a single loser in this deal. Does that make me the schmuck?
My biggest fear now is higher ticket prices. Sure, these lovely renovations sound wonderful but at some point you've got to know that it will all come at a cost. The only question is when and how. I'm sure that at some point Benson and "family" will tell us how nice of a facility the Saints have provided fans and the only way to continue to provide such a great facility is by raising ticket prices and passing the burden on to the consumer.
Anyway, the part of this whole deal that fans are probably most excited about is the pimping out of the Superdome. Word on the street is that the Superdome will begin to compete with the other top-notch facilities being built around the league. Sounds a bit optimistic but I'm along for the ride; not that I have a choice. There have been quite a few news pieces written about this story in the local media but it can all seem a bit confusing and overwhelming. I have taken the liberty of putting together a sort of "Superdome Renovation Guide for Dummies." It details some of the changes that fans can expect to see to the Superdome over the next coming years.
So without further ado...Driver...MOVE...THAT...BUS!!!
(Click to enlarge)
(Click to enlarge)