NFL hands off Super Bowl LIV to Miami Dolphins for 100th year
By Brian Miller
The Super Bowl is over and the NFL has officially handed the next one over to the Miami Dolphins and the city of Miami as they ring in year 100 with Super Bowl LIV.
On Sunday night Atlanta hosted the 99th season finale and the 53rd Super Bowl. Now it’s up to the Miami Dolphins and the city of Miami to show why they are the best city to host Super Bowls as they ready for Super Bowl LIV.
@NFL Super Bowl Handoff press conference. Great week in Atlanta and excited that the @MIASBLIV is now on the clock #superbowl #100years pic.twitter.com/KDbZMENrks
— Jason Jenkins (@jasonljenkins) February 4, 2019
The city of Miami has hosted 10 Super Bowls and now will host a record 11th in 2020 when the 2019 season concludes. Stephen Ross and Tom Garfinkel are the ones to credit for making it happen.
It was about seven years ago that the NFL told the Dolphins that without major changes to an aging stadium the likelihood of them hosting another Super Bowl were slim. Stephen Ross began working to get that done with then CEO Mike Dee but it was Tom Garfinkel who along with Ross got it from paper to reality.
As the Dolphins stadium renovations took shape the NFL decided that if any city was going to host a Super Bowl they needed to give up one home game and play overseas. The Dolphins agreed and gave up not one but two in that time. The Super Bowl committee saw fit to give the Dolphins the big game in the biggest season of the NFL. The 100th.
There is irony in Super Bowl LIV landing in Miami because of the Dolphins “Club LIV” that hosts a party every home game in a an area that overlooks the field. It seems fitting.
The Atlanta Super Bowl is over and now the attention is turned to Miami where they will showcase the best of what South Florida has to offer. Unfortunately it is a huge long shot that the Dolphins come close to being in that game.