By Alex Trickett BBC Sport Online

The teams:

Baseball: None
American Football: Saints
Basketball: Hornets
Ice Hockey: None

It took a lot of doing, but New Orleans has finally won back a basketball franchise after years in the NBA wilderness.

Superdome: Host venue for the 2002 Super Bowl

In 1974, the appropriately named New Orleans Jazz joined the league, equipped with virtuoso talent "Pistol" Pete Maravich.

They headed out west to Utah five years later, but in 2002 were finally replaced by the Hornets, drafted in from Charlotte.

New Orleans has had a more stable - if unspectacular - American football history, winning the 16th NFL franchise in 1966, and fielding sporadically strong teams.

The Saints have yet to reach the Super Bowl, but their stadium has hosted America's biggest sporting occasion more times than any other.

'Refrigerator' visits London

Completed in 1975, the New Orleans Superdome has also welcomed star names as diverse as the Pope and the Rolling Stones and stages annual Mardi Gras parades.

Above all though, it has treated fans to top-quality gridiron showdowns.

In 1986, William "Refrigerator" Perry memorably bulldozed the Chicago Bears to victory over New England.

Four years later, legendary quarterback Joe Montana picked apart Denver with his San Francisco 49ers en route to his fourth Super Bowl ring.

Fans should be in for another memorable game when St Louis square off against New England in this year's showcase game.

Named as one of the top-50 players to ever grace the NBA, Pete Maravich was a free-scoring genius with plenty of tricks up his sleeve.

'Pistol Pete': Holds many NCAA records

His 'playground' passes and behind-the-back dribbling moves were frowned upon by purists, but they paid dividends for the Atlanta Hawks and then for the New Orleans Jazz.

As the star player on a brand-new team, much rested on Maravich's shoulders and he soon delivered, firing an amazing 68 points in a game against the New York Knicks in 1977.

He was voted onto the all-NBA first team that year, but is even more famous for his efforts at Louisiana State University, where he mastered the game as a student, setting NCAA records that may never be broken.

Much was expected of Ricky Williams when he first suited up as a Saint in 1999.

Ricky Williams: One for the future

Then-coach Mike Ditka had made history by trading the franchise's entire draft to pick him up as the fifth overall pick that year.

But 236lb running back Williams did not immediately live up to enormous NFL expectation, rushing for only 884 yards in his first injury-hit season.

He has improved since then and is starting to show glimpses of the form that earned him all-time NCAA records in rushing yards (6,279) and touchdowns (75) at Texas.

The Saints will need his yards if they are to make an impact in 2002.