The Miami Dolphins are looking to upgrade Sun Life Stadium and are asking for assistance from public funds to pay for it. Owner Stephen Ross has pledged to pay for over half of the costs, estimated at $400 million, but is asking for somewhere around $199 million from the tax payers.
In order to justify the expenditure, the team has been stating that Sun Life Stadium's age is making it less-and-less likely to be awarded a Super Bowl. After the NFL Owners Meeting this week, it appears the Dolphins were not kidding about that.
"I would just reinforce the point again that the stadium is a big component of [Super Bowl selection]. It's important for us to be able to play the game on the best possible stage and the stadiums are getting better and better and more and more important. ," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told the media yesterday.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross discussed the potential loss of Super Bowls if the renovations don't happen this week as well. "The question is can we get approved. I do know without a renovated or modernized stadium, Miami is not going to get Super Bowls. And I don't want us to become another San Diego where people love going to San Diego.
"They didn't do anything to the stadium, and they haven't had a Super Bowl there in what, 15 or 20 years even though they love the experience there. I do know that I think Miami if we modernize the stadium, and I feel excited about that because being a real estate developer and going through the plans it's going to be a new stadium."
The Dolphins are hoping to get approval through the state legislature, as well as approval from the citizens of the county and the Miami-Dade county commission, prior to the NFL Owners Meeting May 22 decides the host of the 50th Super Bow. With the funding in place, the Dolphins feel they can compete against the other finalist, the San Francisco 49ers. Without it, the team realizes they will not be hosting that game, and possibly any others.