Tulane Stadium Tulane Stadium was an outdoor football stadium located in New Orleans , Louisiana from 1926 to 1980 . Officially known as the Third Tulane Stadium , it replaced the " Second Tulane Stadium " where the Telephone Exchange Building is now located . The site is currently bound by Willow Street to the south , Ben Weiner Drive to the east , the Tulane University property line west of McAlister Drive , and the modular housing quad and the George G . “ Sunny ” Westfeldt Practice and Competition Facility to the north . The stadium hosted three of the first nine Super Bowl s in January 1970 , 1972 , and 1975 . History . Opening . The stadium was opened in 1926 with a seating capacity of roughly 35 , 000 on the sidelines of the field . Tulane Stadium was built on Tulane University ' s campus ( before 1871 , Tulane ' s campus was Paul Foucher ' s Plantation , where Foucher ' s father - in - law , Etienne de Bore , had first granulated sugar from cane syrup ) . Since the institution of the annual Sugar Bowl game , Tulane Stadium itself was often informally referred to as " the Sugar Bowl " . It was also billed as " The Queen of Southern Stadiums " . It was in a portion of Tulane University ' s main campus in Uptown New Orleans fronting Willow Street , with parking stretching to Claiborne Avenue . The original 1926 structure was mostly of brick and concrete . The institution of the annual Sugar Bowl game . The first Sugar Bowl game was played on January 1 , 1935 , at Tulane Stadium and matched host Tulane against the Temple Owls from Philadelphia . The term " Sugar Bowl " had been coined by Fred Digby , sports editor of the " New Orleans Item , " who had been pushing for an annual New Year ' s Day football game since 1927 . Seating expansion . The stadium was eventually expanded to seat up to 80 , 985 fans . In its final configuration , the stadium included four concrete and steel sections ( separated at the corners of the field ) , with a short steel upper deck wrapping around the sides and north end of the stadium . The press box was located on the western side of the field , and the main gate ( pictured above ) was at the southern end of the field facing Willow Street . The support structure for the upper deck was entirely open , exposing the ramps and lattice work , and hiding the original brick facade underneath with the exception of the Willow Street end of the stadium . Lights were installed in 1957 . The record attendance for the stadium was set on December 1 , 1973 , when 86 , 598 watched Tulane defeat in - state rival LSU 14 - 0 , ending a 25 - year winless streak for the Green Wave against the Bayou Bengals . It was the last installment of the LSU - Tulane rivalry played on the Tulane campus . Tulane ' s final game on campus . Tulane ' s final game on campus came 364 days later , a 26 - 10 loss to Ole Miss on a miserably cold afternoon November 30 , 1974 . One month later , Nebraska won the final college game in the stadium , defeating Florida 13 - 10 in the Sugar Bowl on December 31st . As the home of the New Orleans Saints . In addition to hosting Tulane University football games and the Sugar Bowl , the stadium was also home to the National Football League ' s New Orleans Saints from 1967 through 1974 . The Saints ' first game was a 27 - 13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on September 17 , 1967 , although New Orleans provided fans with a memorable highlight when John Gilliam returned the opening kickoff 94 yards for a touchdown . The Saints won their last game in the stadium , 14 - 0 over the St . Louis Cardinals on December 8 , 1974 . As the site of the Super Bowl . Tulane Stadium was the site of three early Super Bowls : IV , VI , and IX . Super Bowl IX was the final professional league game ever played at the stadium . Tom Dempsey ' s 63 - yard field goal . Aside from the various bowls , the most memorable moment at the stadium might have been the Saints victory over the Detroit Lions on November 8 , 1970 . In the NFL prior to the 1974 season , the goal posts were on the goal line instead of the end line . With seconds remaining , the Saints attempted a place kick with the holder spotting at the Saints ' own 37 - yard line . Kicker Tom Dempsey nailed the 63 - yard field goal with a couple of feet to spare , and the Saints won the game 19 - 17 , one of only two games the Saints won that year . That record would stand alone for 28 years before it was tied by Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos , and later Sebastian Janikowski of the Oakland Raiders . Usage following the opening of the Louisiana Superdome . In 1975 , the day the new Louisiana Superdome was opened , Tulane Stadium was condemned . Upon appeal by the University , the older concrete and brick section was deemed fit to use , but not the newer metal seating section . The stadium then continued in more limited use for five years with the smaller seating area , used for football practice , high - school games , and other smaller events . The Denver Broncos used Tulane Stadium as its practice facility prior to Super Bowl XII , the first Super Bowl played in the Superdome . Tulane Stadium ' s final game . The last game played in the stadium was a game between New Orleans Catholic League rivals De La Salle High School , located less than two miles ( 3 km ) from the Tulane campus , and Archbishop Rummel High School on November 1 , 1979 . The last point scored in Tulane Stadium History was by Rummel High place kicker Gary Boudreaux . Demolition . On November 2 , 1979 , Tulane President Sheldon Hackney announced that the stadium would be demolished . The demolition started on November 18 , 1979 and ended in 1980 . While the storage areas underneath the seating in the stadium were being emptied prior to demolition , various neglected University possessions were rediscovered , including an Ancient Egypt ian mummy couple . The site is currently home to the Aron and Willow student housing complexes , the Diboll parking structure , the Reily Student Fitness Center and Brown Quad , a Fieldturf quad that roughly occupies the site of the football field . Tulane Stadium is one of three stadiums that had hosted a Super Bowl that are no longer standing . Tampa Stadium , which hosted two Super Bowls , was demolished in 1999 and the Orange Bowl , which hosted five Super Bowl games , was demolished in 2008 .