It’s safe to say the New Orleans Saints moving their 2024 training camp to California isn’t a very popular move. Taking one of the most accessible events for fans and sending it halfway across the country, where NFL rules may not even allow fans on the West Coast to attend practices, has drawn a lot of criticism.
Ongoing renovations to the team headquarters and the construction of a new cafeteria meant the Saints would be taking their training camp on the road this summer. But the plan is to be back for 2025 and beyond. Team president Dennis Lauscha addressed that during a Saturday press conference.
“No one wants to be back more, I can promise you, than Ms. Benson, Mickey (Loomis), myself,” Lauscha said. “We get it. We love having our fans there. It stinks when we don’t have our fans here. That’s kind of why we put off this construction as long as we did, to be perfectly honest with you. Because we were hoping there were perhaps a better way not to impact our training camp. But at some point you have to suck it up and you do it, and that’s where we are.”
Obviously there are lot of unknowns when you’re talking about things more than a year away. A severe weather event like a major hurricane could change the plans at the last minute. We just don’t know. We don’t even know if Dennis Allen will be head coach or if Derek Carr will be the quarterback in 2025. But right now the plan is for the Saints to take training camp to California in 2024 before returning in 2025 with plenty of opportunities for fans to come out and support the team.
There are plans for more fan amenities in the works like permanent bleachers with shading and cooling areas to help manage the Louisiana summer heat and humidity. But that’s all part of the next phase after they complete renovations to the cafeteria and indoor practice facility, among other projects (with similar upgrades breaking ground next door at the New Orleans Pelicans’ base of operations). The Saints are making a ton of off-field investments to improve the fan experience. Hopefully their efforts on the field line up with it to give those fans something to cheer for.
