Dolphin Stadium, formerly known as Joe Robbie Stadium, is located one mile south of the Dade-Broward county line and sits on a 160-acre site. It is 16 miles northwest of downtown Miami and 18 miles south of Ft. Lauderdale.
Spectators driving to the venue are accommodated by the availability of 15,000 on-site, secured parking spaces as well as 254 spaces for buses. A highlight is the accessibility of a helipad located on the premises.
Dolphin Stadium prides itself on the prescription Athletic Turf (natural grass) making up the playing surface. It was designed with mechanical drainage capability and provides a firm playing surface within 30 minutes of a 1" per hour of rain.
The 80,024 seat stadium was designed with the spectator in mind. The general seating in Dolphins Stadium is a 19" chairback seat with armrest. Each seat offers an excellent view of the playing field and there are no obstructed seats in the stadium. Access to your seat is easily gained by utilizing one of the two ramps or the escalators located at each of our four entrance gates.
Dolphin Stadium offers the utmost in comfort and convenience. In the general seating areas (100, 400 levels), there are 40 concession stands, each featuring a TV monitor so as not to miss a minute of the action. Throughout the stadium, there are a total of 80 restrooms (40 men and 40 women). Inside the stadium, there are two giant scoreboards on both ends of the facility, each comprised of a Sony JumboTRON video screen.
Miami stadium renamed Pro Player Stadium
MIAMI, August 26, 1997 (Reuters) - Pro Player, the sports apparel brand of Fruit of the Loom Inc. has paid $20 million for the right to rename Joe Robbie Stadium, home of football's Miami Dolphins and baseball's Florida Marlins, the company announced on Monday.
The stadium, built by late Dolphins founder Joe Robbie, will be called Pro Player Stadium under terms of a 10-year deal worth $2 million annually, the company said.
The stadium hosted the 1989 and 1995 Super Bowl games and also hosts the Federal Express Orange Bowl and Carquest Bowl, annual college football games.
Robbie, who died in January 1990, was a Minnesota trial lawyer who bought the Dolphins in a limited partnership with actor Danny Thomas in 1965 and turned the franchise into one of the most valuable in professional sports.
When Robbie built the stadium in 1987, it was a state-of- the-art facility built with private financing. It was sold to entrepreneur Wayne Huizenga, who built the Blockbuster Video empire, also owns the Pathers of the NHL and baseball's Marlins. Pro Player, Inc., a division of Chicago-based Fruit of the Loom, is a sportswear company headquartered in Hudson, New Hampshire.
January 27, 1999 (AP) - Pro golfer Greg Norman visited Dolphin Stadium long before the Falcons or Broncos arrived for Media Day.
Norman's private helicopter landed outside the stadium and he was driven inside on - what else? - a golf cart. Norman then inspected the field for Sunday's Super Bowl.
The field happens to be mad of grass grown at the Greg Norman Turf Farm in Avon Park, Florida.
PRO PLAYER TO ADD LUXURY SUITES; START AD CAMPAIGN
May 6, 1999
Copyright 1999 MediaVentures
The sports writers are getting the boot and a second level press box at Dolphin Stadium will be converted into three new luxury suites. The $2 million project will be complete in time for this fall's NFL season. The new 48-person suites will lease for $600,000 annually and include tickets for both the Marlins and the Dolphins.
The stadium and the Dolphins are also teaming up in a campaign to get more fans into the venue for football games. The stadium and the team are owned by H. Wayne Huizenga.
The pair have scheduled $1 million in advertising to begin running in late May with the theme: "Dolphins football at Dolphins Stadium. Feel the power. Catch it live." The ads will run on television, in newspapers and on billboards. The goal is to provide branding for both entities and promote the excitement of watching a game in person. ItÕs also a departure from traditional venue advertising which tends to promote features rather than the experience.
PRO PLAYER STADIUM JOINS INTERNET AUCTION GAME
November 11, 1999
Copyright 1999 MediaVentures
MiamiÕs Dolphins Stadium is offering a luxury suite on an Internet auction site for the DolphinÕs Dec. 19 game against San Diego. The 12-person package is offered
through reverseauction.com.
The offer includes a 12 person suite, a visit by a team alumnus, four parking passes and four shirts. When we checked Thursday, the price was $11,960 and there were
11 sealed bids. The suite was originally priced at $15,000. The suite normally leases for $6,500 per game.
Under the rules of the auction, the original price of the suite will be continuously discounted and the current price is displayed on the screen. While thatÕs taking place,
bidders can send in sealed bids or someone can decide to buy the package at the current price. The auction will continue until someone either buys the package at the current price, the declining price equals one of the sealed bids or the declining price matches the minimum the seller has set for sale. The Dolphins have put no restrictions on how low the bidding may go.
Once the suite is sold, the price paid remains secret. Company officials hope the effort will be successful enough to encourage other venues to place available suites up
for auction.
THE ULTIMATE SPORTS ROAD TRIP
By: Andrew Kulyk & Peter Farrell
| Dolphin Stadium Ranking by USRT |
| Architecture |  | 8 |
| Concessions | | 7 |
| Scoreboard | | 4 |
| Ushers | | 5 |
| Fan Support | | 5 |
| Location | | 6 |
| Banners/History | | 9 |
| Entertainment | | 3 |
| Concourses/Fan Comfort | | 5 |
| Bonus: Tailgate Scene | | 2 |
| Bonus: Bills Rivalry | | 1 |
| Total Score |  | 54 |
October 20, 2002 - The Miami Dolphins began play in 1966 and for the first twenty years of their existence they played their home games in the historic Orange Bowl. After two NFL titles, one perfect season, and a twenty game win streak over a certain NFL team the Dolphins decided that playing in a stadium that created more revenue was an absolute necessity. And hence in 1987 they moved into Joe Robbie Stadium, a brand new state of the art facility on the northern border of Miami. Significant renovations were made in the early nineties for the arrival of the MLB Marlins, and by the mid nineties the corporate naming craze made its way to this venue as it was officially renamed Pro Player Stadium.
Getting to the Venue
Pretty simple to get to as the Florida Turnpike and I-195 all lead you right to Pro Player Stadium, which straddles the Dade/Broward County lines. Permit parking is located close to the stadium while farther away across the street there are cash lots charging 20 dollars.
Outside the Venue
In this area of north Dade County, there is little in terms of adjoining neighborhoods. Just wide boulevards and expressways taking you into the stadium property. Tailgating is encouraged here, and in an interesting twist the lots are full of canvas canopies. That's right, your typical Dol-fans bring along a canopy to shield themselves from the oppressive sun and sometimes drenching rain. In today's case it was the sun bearing down the 85 degree heat with nary a gust of wind to be had.
On the south side of the stadium are statues of Joe Robbie, Don Shula, and Dan Marino. Nearby stands the Dolphins fan experience, with plenty of interactive games to be played, food and drink to be had, live music, prizes and the occasional radio broadcasts going on.
The Concourses
The stadium itself is octagon shaped, and in each of the four corners are circular ramps and canopied escalator towers to whisk fans to the club and upper levels. Concourses here are pretty congested, and that is largely due to the throngs of fans who leave the seating bowl to escape the heat. This is a difficult building to navigate.
On the lower level are four corner bars, providing a sports bar atmosphere in an outdoor setting, complete with full bar service and video walls showing NFL Sunday Ticket.. The upper concourse gives the fan sweeping views of the outlying areas with the skylines of Ft. Lauderdale and Miami visible in the distance. Scattered through the venue are numerous small team merchandise stores.
Concessions
A variety of places to find all kinds of food and drink, with corporations such as Pizza Hut, Carvel, and Mrs. Field's combining with themed stands named Seaside Grill and Pelican Cafe. Nothing more than the standard ballpark dreck on the menu. And yeah there is a specialty stand offering Buffalo Wings (in Miami???). One look at them and pros like us can immediately tell you that they were not the real deal. Not even close...
Seating Area
Armchair seating for close to 75,000, most colored in Dolphin orange split into two levels, with a club seating area and teal seats surrounding the top of the lower level. Color accents are all done in Florida colors - orange, blue and teal. Two jumbotron scoreboards, one at each end zone, that also provide constant out of town scores and stats to boot. Two levels of suites can be found surrounding the playing field between the two levels.
Premium Seating
This was one of the first NFL venues to introduce the club seat concept, a novel idea now duplicated just about everywhere. The 200 level concourse is climate controlled, and a premium restaurant called the Hall of Champions and a bar overlooking the field called the Legends Club are available to club ticket holders. Ticket prices here run from $145-$270.
Retired Numbers and Banners
Flags at three of the four corners of the stadium stand to commemorate the Dolphins greatest players and achievements. In one corner are two flags celebrating their back to back Super Bowl victories over the Redskins(VII) and Vikings(VIII). At another corner are five flags for the AFC Titles won in 1971, 1972, 1973, 1982, and 1984. Still in a third spot are two flags for the retired numbers 12 and 13 for Brian....errr BOB Griese and ohhh....what was that guys name again, let's check the encyclopedia here.....ahhh yes, Marino, Dan Marino. A flag bearing Larry Csonka's #39 will be added later in the 2002 season.
Also to be noted is the Dolphins Honor Roll on the facade of the upper deck with the names of many other Dolphin legends including Joe Robbie, Don Shula, and the 1972 undefeated team that won Super Bowl VII. While most names are facing the sideline, Dan Marino gets his name listed in the end zone along with his career totals for TDs, completions, attempts, and passing yardage - all of which are career NFL records!!
Touchdowns, Extra Points, Fumbles....
Touchdown - Let's hear it for the Ultimate Sports Road Trip jinx!!! Yes normally our hearts are with the home team wherever we go to, except when any Buffalo club is playing, and ESPECIALLY when it's against the Dolphins. What a thrill it was to see the Bills down the Fish 23-10 and we're not sure if it was that close.
Fumble - err....Interception(s).....Dolphins backup QB Ray Lucas started in place of the injured Jay Fiedler. After a game in which Lucas fumbled twice and threw four interceptions one could say that a better performance could have been had by filmmaker George Lucas, or retired NBA thug Maurice Lucas!!!
Touchdown and Game Ball - to Russ Salvatore of Salvatore's Italian Gardens. Each year, Russ rents out Shooters Waterfront Cafe, a canalside hot spot in Ft. Lauderdale on the night before the game. When the place was in full swing, there were several hundred Bills backers partying long into the night....a great time was had by all including us!!
Fumble - Questionable rules and regulations...Yes we realize that in today's day and age security is a priority, and checks of carried items are pretty routine. But can someone explain why a small clear plastic bag cannot be carried into Pro Player Stadium, yet once a souvenir is bought inside the gates it is then perfectly acceptable for it to be placed in a similar clear, plastic bag???? Who thinks this stuff up!!!
Fumble - The "Miami Dolphins" fight song! A direct takeoff of the old Houston Oilers fight song. ARE WE THE ONLY PEOPLE INFURIATED ABOUT THIS PATHETIC ATTEMPT TO STEAL A SONG AND MAKE IT THEIR OWN!! And a pretty lame song at that.
The Bills make me wanna SHOUT! (OK, well at LEAST we changed some of the lyrics for gosh sakes!)
Extra Point - several six lane roads run by Pro Player Stadium, and near the stadium there are traffic signals and overhead lane guides that advise motorists as to which lanes are going in which direction, of course this changes at various times during game day. Nice way to control traffic.
Extra Point - Immediately outside the stadium are on ramps taking you right onto the Florida Turnpike. The steel support beams under the ramps are painted in orange and teal.
Summary
A nice venue with a decent tailgate on the outside and a pretty good atmosphere within the walls of the facility. Pro Player is a great place to witness an NFL contest, yet despite its young age it is being passed up by the many newer NFL venues that have sprung up in the past few years. But if the weather is good and the tickets are available, as both are usually the case, Pro Player will always remain a favorite destination for those from parts beyond South Florida to catch their team in action. Our advice, bring a cap, sunscreen and wear shorts!
