New Orleans had been preparing for Super Bowl XXXVI ever since the city was awarded the game on October 28, 1998 during the NFL's meetings in Kansas City, Missouri, beating out San Diego as host city. However, the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks led the league to postpone its September 16 games and play them a week after the scheduled conclusion of the regular season. This caused the playoffs and Super Bowl to be delayed by one week. Rescheduling Super Bowl XXXVI from January 27 to February 3 proved extraordinarily difficult. In addition to rescheduling the game itself, all related events and activities had to be accommodated. This marked the first time in NFL history that the Super Bowl was played in February; all subsequent Super Bowls (excluding Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003) after that have been played in February.