Caesars Entertainment Likely To Get Naming Rights Of Saints Superdome

• The New Orleans Saints are linked to partnering with Caesars Entertainment to give the gaming company naming rights to the Superdome for the next 20 years beginning in July.
• This will be the first NFL stadium in the nation to have its naming rights owned and sponsored by a gambling business.
• Louisiana should see a regulated sports betting market go live in the state by the beginning of the 2021 NFL season.

NEW ORLEANS – Louisiana will have regulated sports betting markets in 55 of the 64 parishes in the state and it seems that the New Orleans Saints are gearing up for a potential sportsbook with a partnership in the works with Caesars Entertainment.

No rules or regulations have been put into place for sportsbooks as the regulation of the industry only just occurred in November through a public vote. The 2021 session will lay out the framework for the newly regulated sports betting market in Louisiana but the session does not begin until April.

However, the New Orleans Saints are getting the jump on what could lead to a Caesars sportsbook for the NFL team. At the moment, Caesars would own the naming rights of the Superdome for the next twenty years. No names have been publicized because a deal cannot officially be made until the current deal with Mercedes-Benz expires in July. However, it has been disclosed that Caesars will pay the Saints $10 million a year for the duration of the partnership.

“Mercedes-Benz is currently under contract until July of this year as the naming rights partner,” said Greg Bensel, senior vice-president of communications for the Saints and the New Orleans Pelicans. “We do not have anything official to report as there is not a signed deal with any company at this time. We continue to have conversations with numerous interested companies.”

Mercedes-Benz chose not to extend their ten-year contract with the Saints after inking a 27-year contract to obtain the naming rights for the Atlanta Falcons’ stadium. This will be the second acquisition of Caesars Entertainment in New Orleans as the company will be rebranding the New Orleans Harrah’s Casino with the Caesars name. This is possibly another way to try and get a Louisiana sports betting license in the future through the Harrah’s location.

Regulated sports wagering in Louisiana could see both retail and mobile sportsbooks. All of the details for the industry will need to be hashed out during the legislative session. It is the hope of lawmakers that the market will be able to launch by the start of NFL season rather than in 2022. They believe that the NFL season is a doable timeline for sports wagering to open up in Louisiana.

And should the new law allow for the Saints to get a Caesars sportsbook at the Superdome, it will make this future deal in the works that much better. Either way, this could be a historic moment as the Superdome will be the very first NFL venue in the United States to have a gambling company as a sponsor in charge of naming rights. The deal between the New Orleans Saints and Caesars Entertainment can become official in July, just in time for the 2021 NFL season.

News tags: Atlanta Falcons | Caesars Entertainment | Greg Bensel | Louisiana | Mercedes-Benz | New Orleans | New Orleans Harrah’s Casino | New Orleans Saints | NFL | Superdome