Miami Dolphins Stadium

Dolphin Stadium is located in Miami Gardens, Florida and was first opened in August 16, 1987. This stadium was unique as it was the very first stadium built by a private backer, Joe Robbie. Dolphin Stadium was also one of the first stadiums to include executive seating and a club level which made it very popular for the wealthy to attend and have a private area for themselves. Dolphin Stadium is currently used for the Miami Dolphins, the Miami Hurricanes, and the Florida Marlins. Dolphin Stadium seats 76,500 for football games, 74,916 for soccer games, and has the capacity to hold 68,000 baseball fans but usually seats 38,560.

History

At a price tag of $115 million dollars, this stadium was one of the more expensive stadiums build in the 1980s. When it first opened, it was called the Joe Robbie Stadium, named after the person who provided all of the financing. Joe Robbie insisted that his stadium was wider than standard stadiums so it could house soccer and baseball teams in addition to the Miami Dolphins. If this stadium wasn't built this way, the Florida Marlins would have never been created. The Miami Dolphins have always been the biggest draw to this stadium but some other noteworthy events are housing the Orange Bowl as well as four Super Bowls and two World Series.

In 1996, Joe Robbie Stadium officially became Pro Player Stadium after Fruit of the Loom bought the rights to the stadium's name. In 1999, Pro Player filed for bankruptcy and the name was changed again to Dolphin Stadium in 2005. The name will change again in 2010 but there is no information on what the new name will be.

Super Bowls

The Miami Dolphins were an absolute powerhouse in the 1980s and 1990s. Dolphin Stadium has been the home to four different Super Bowls, and these are XXIII, XXIX, XXXIII, XLI. Super Bowl XXIII featured the San Francisco 49ers taking on the Cincinnati Bengals in 1989, Super Bowl XXIX featured the San Francisco 49ers taking on the San Diego Chargers in 1995, Super Bowl XXIII featured the Denver Broncos taking on the Atlanta Falcons in 1999, and Super Bowl XLI was the Indianapolis Colts taking on the Chicago Bears in 2007.

Recent Stadium Renovations

In the fall of 2007, Dolphin Stadium completed some amazing renovations and architectural upgrades. The overall feel of the stadium now reflects life in Southern Florida with beautiful tones and themes inspired by the ocean. The total price tag on this renovation and upgrade was $250 million dollars. Some of the new improvements you can experience are extra restaurants and lounges, a new and improved Club level, and Hi-definition flat screen monitors placed throughout the stadium so you don't miss a single minute of the action. Many new areas were created where you and your party can gather before, after and even during games to sit down and relax more comfortably.

Dolphin Stadium is great because of many factors. The Miami Dolphins and Florida Marlins are both very exciting teams to watch and the fans are very loyal. This makes for great games with a lot of home team support that can be quite loud at times. Back when the name was Joe Robbie Stadium, the movie Ace Ventura: Pet Detective came out which gave the Miami Dolphins and their stadium an extreme amount of media attention. The movie was so popular that it opened up a whole new branch of tourism as many people who weren't even interested in football wanted to see where that movie was made.

Dolphin Stadium remains as one of the most popular destinations in Miami for tourists and local team supporters alike. A trip to Miami just isn't complete without checking out Dolphin Stadium.