NEW ORLEANS -- On Thursday, New Orleans will be a worldwide stage for the opening game of the NFL season.
The Saints will take on the Minnesota Vikings, but before all the action in the Superdome, fans are expected to overflow Jackson Square for a parade and free concert.
The Saints' Super Bowl win is giving the city another economic boost, months after their big win.
Wednesday morning looked like Lundi Gras on Bourbon Street, with beer trucks unloading, the street getting a cleaning, and people milling about, ready for a party.
“Tonight's gonna be pretty busy, but tomorrow we're gearing up for a day that's gonna kind of be like Mardi Gras day,” said Earl Bernhardt, owner of six bars on Bourbon Street. “We're double staffing. We've told our bartenders to prepare to work till the wee hours of the morning. We're doubling up on our chains that we give the bartenders.”
Anywhere from 20 to 100,000 people are expected to flow into the French Quarter on Thursday. Not only will they boost local businesses, but the NFL is spending big bucks on the event.
The stage they built in Jackson Square, for example, is elaborate and high-tech.
When asked about the investment the NFL has made here, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said, "We make a significant investment. But it's all important to us because we're creating a stage for the start of our season and this great team and this great community.”
A football frenzy is nothing new for the French Quarter, or for Pat O'Brien’s. But getting an event this size during the tourist slow season is.
“With the game coming into town on a Thursday is really gonna give us a big boost,” said Shelly Waguespack, vice president of Pat O’Brien’s and President of the French Quarter Business Association.
Waguespack said the event is a money-making opportunity, despite concerns from some businesses about parking and street closures.
“With this many people, businesses are gonna do well. We're gonna make money. We're gonna have people in the French Quarter, and so I think we should all be very happy that the NFL decided to come here,” she said.
“It's always special when you're here because this community knows how to celebrate. And they're celebrating a Super Bowl Championship of the Saints and celebrating the start of our season and we're proud to be here,” Goodell said.
On Wednesday, the NFL wasn’t the only group setting up in advance of Thursday's home opener. Tailgaters staked out their spots along Poydras Street and in other parts of the Central Business District.
