Goodell to New Orleans: Atlanta bid ‘unusually strong and unique’
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, in a letter to the New Orleans Saints’ owner, said New Orleans lost out to “unusually strong and unique competition” for the right to host the 2019 Super Bowl.
That competition was Atlanta, which was chosen by NFL owners on a fourth ballot Tuesday as the site of the February 2019 game.
The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune on Thursday obtained the letter from Goodell to Saints owner Tom Benson thanking "you and your team for the hard work and impressive bid by New Orleans."
“The vision for a ‘Big, Easy, Super Bowl’ was well articulated and presented,” Goodell wrote. “…. Although you did not secure the 2019 game against unusually strong and unique competition, we would look forward to working closely with you and your community in bringing a Super Bowl back to New Orleans soon.”
Four cities – Atlanta, Miami, New Orleans and Tampa – were on the ballot to host the 2019 game when the 32 NFL owners voted at a meeting in Charlotte, N.C., on Tuesday. Miami and Tampa were eliminated on the second ballot, leaving Atlanta vs. New Orleans. After neither city gained the necessary 75 percent of the vote on the third ballot, Atlanta prevailed by a simple majority on the fourth.
Atlanta's bid emphasized the new Mercedes-Benz Stadium and the considerable taxpayer investment in it. The bid also stressed the other downtown attractions and thousands of hotel rooms within walking distance of the stadium.
The bid estimated the local cost of hosting Super Bowl LIII at $46 million, with $20 million to come from corporate donations, $16 million from a portion of the Atlanta hotel-motel tax designated for major events and $10 million from a sales-tax exemption on Super Bowl tickets.
All five NFL stadiums that have opened since 2006 have hosted Super Bowls. And the next two stadiums to open – Minnesota’s this year and Atlanta’s next year — will host back-to-back Super Bowls in 2018 and 2019.
About the Author
Tim Tucker, a long-time AJC sports reporter, often writes about the business side of the games. He also had stints as the AJC's Braves beat writer, UGA beat writer, sports notes columnist and executive sports editor. He was deputy managing editor of America's first all-sports newspaper, The National Sports Daily.
