The place where the Miami NFL franchise plays has been known by many names. From Dolphins Stadium to Joe Robbie Stadium to Pro Player Stadium to Pro Player Park to Dolphin Stadium to Land Shark Stadium to Sun Life Stadium to a stadium that currently has no naming-rights partner, the venue has carried plenty of labels since it opened in 1987.
Soon, it could have another new name.
During a Wednesday visit to PFT Live on NBC Sports Radio, Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald said that Hard Rock International may buy the rights.
Later in the same show, Dolphins president Tom Garfinkel offered this response to a question on the status of the naming rights: “I can’t disclose who the companies are [negotiating], but I can tell you we’re in sort of what I call late-stage discussions with a few different companies. I’m optimistic that we’ve got to get one into the end zone here, but I think we’re in the red zone and pushing towards the goal line. So hopefully we get one done soon and [I’m] excited about the potential of getting a new name on it.”
Getting a Super Bowl necessarily makes the naming rights more valuable to any company that thinks there’s value in having its name attached to a stadium. Fortunately for major sports teams throughout the world, more than enough corporations see the value treating a place where football is played like a giant billboard.