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The New Orleans Saints are an American professional football franchise based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League. The team was founded by John W. Mecom, Jr. and David Dixon and the city of New Orleans. The Saints began play at Tulane Stadium in 1967.
The name "Saints" is an allusion to November 1 being All Saints Day in the Catholic faith, New Orleans' large Catholic population, and the spiritual When the Saints Go Marching In, which is strongly associated with New Orleans. The team's primary colors are old gold and black; their logo is a simplified fleur-de-lis. They played their home games in Tulane Stadium through the 1974 NFL season. The following year, they moved to the new Louisiana Superdome.
For most of their first 20 years, the Saints were barely competitive, only getting to .500 twice. In 1987, they finished 12–3 and made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, but lost to the Minnesota Vikings 44–10. The next season of 1988 would end with a 10–6 record, proving that the Saints were a competitive team, and that 1987 was not a fluke. The Saints defeated the St. Louis Rams 31–28 in 2000 to notch their first-ever playoff win.
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