★ THE OCTOPUS'S SOCCER ALMANAC ★ VENUE FILE No. HRK-015: HARD ROCK STADIUM ★ THE ROCK ★ MIAMI GARDENS · USA ★ OPENED 16 AUGUST 1987 ★ HOST OF 7 MATCHES AT THE 2026 WORLD CUP — THE CANOPY-RINGED MIAMI BOWL THAT STAGED THE 2024 COPA FINAL ★ FILED BY PROF. INKSWORTH ★
🇬🇧 EN
HARD ROCK STADIUM
The Rock — Miami Gardens, United States
MIAMI GARDENS · USA · OPENED 1987 · CAP 64,767

📋 QUICK FACTS

FULL NAME
Hard Rock Stadium
NICKNAME
The Rock
OPENED
16 August 1987 (opening event: Miami Dolphins vs Chicago Bears (NFL pre-season))
CAPACITY NOW
64,767 (football configuration; expandable for major events)
ALTITUDE
3 m / 10 ft above sea level
PITCH
105 m × 68 m · Bermuda grass
ROOF
Open-air canopy shading ~90% of seats; pitch open to the sky
ARCHITECT
HOK Sport (now Populous)
OWNER
Stephen M. Ross
TENANTS
Miami Dolphins · Miami Hurricanes · Miami Open · F1 Miami GP

📊 THE NUMBERS

CAPACITY64,767
ROOFCANOPY OVER ~90% OF SEATS · PITCH OPEN
2026 MATCHES HOSTED7 (4 GROUP · R32 · QF · BRONZE FINAL)
SUPER BOWLS STAGED6 (XXIII · XXIX · XXXIII · XLI · XLIV · LIV)

A sea-level multi-purpose bowl whose four corner spires carry a canopy over almost the entire crowd - while the pitch stays open to the South Florida sun and its near-daily June storms.

TOP MATCHES — REPLAY THEATRE
2026
VS Saudi Arabia vs Uruguay GROUP H

Saudi Arabia meet Uruguay in a Group H fixture on 15 June - the first of four group-stage matches scheduled for Miami Gardens.

2026
VS Uruguay vs Cape Verde GROUP H

Uruguay face World Cup debutants Cape Verde in a Group H tie on 21 June.

2026
VS Scotland vs Brazil GROUP C

Scotland take on Brazil in a Group C fixture on 24 June.

2026
VS Colombia vs Portugal GROUP K

Colombia meet Portugal in a Group K tie on 27 June - the last of Miami Gardens' four group-stage matches, which precede a Round of 32 tie, a quarter-final and the Bronze Final at the venue.

⚽ MATCHES HERE — 2026

🔔 RECORD CROWD ON FILE
80,120
Alabama vs Notre Dame - college football national title game
7 January 2013

The largest crowd on record at the ground came not for the Dolphins but for a college football national-championship game - the expandable bowl pushing past 80,000. The 2024 Copa America final (Argentina 1-0 Colombia) was the stadium's headline football night, though its kickoff was delayed over an hour after ticketless fans breached the gates.

VISITOR SNAPSHOT · MIAMI GARDENS

THE SIGHTS

  • South Beach & the Art Deco Historic District
  • Little Havana & Calle Ocho
  • Vizcaya Museum & Gardens
  • Wynwood Walls street-art district
  • Bayside Marketplace & Biscayne Bay
  • The Everglades (a short drive west)

THE TABLE

  • Cuban sandwich & medianoche
  • Stone crab claws (Florida specialty)
  • Ceviche & fresh seafood
  • Pastelitos & croquetas
  • Key lime pie

GOOD TO KNOW

Language
English (with widely spoken Spanish and Haitian Creole)
Currency
US dollar (USD)
Time zone
Eastern Time (UTC-4 in June, daylight saving)
Elevation
About 3 m (10 ft) above sea level - low, flat coastal South Florida.
Population
Around 110,000 in Miami Gardens itself, within a Greater Miami metropolitan area of roughly 6.2 million.

GETTING AROUND

Miami is car-and-rideshare country; the stadium sits off the Florida Turnpike in Miami Gardens, north of downtown. Tri-Rail commuter trains, Metrorail and the free downtown Metromover serve the wider area, but match days lean heavily on shuttles, ride-hailing and the stadium's vast surface parking.

Traveller's tip: leave early and hydrate - summer thunderstorms and traffic both build in the afternoon.

WEATHER BRIEF · JUNE IN SOUTH FLORIDA

HISTORICAL CLIMATE, NOT A FORECAST. Typical June conditions from the climate record - never a matchday prediction.
TYPICAL JUNE HIGH 31°C 88°F
TYPICAL JUNE LOW 25°C 77°F

Miami has a tropical monsoon climate (Koppen Am): hot and humid year-round, with a marked May-October wet season. June sits at the start of that wet season - and of the Atlantic hurricane season - with high heat, heavy humidity and near-daily afternoon thunderstorms.

WHAT TO PACK
  • ☔ A light rain jacket - daily afternoon storms
  • ☀ Strong sunscreen - intense subtropical sun
  • 💧 A water bottle - heat and humidity sap you fast

📜 FILE TIMELINE

1987
Opens on 16 August as Joe Robbie Stadium, a privately financed home for the Miami Dolphins.
1997
As Pro Player Stadium, hosts the Florida Marlins' run to a World Series title - the ground has worn many names over the decades.
2010
Stages Super Bowl XLIV, one of six Super Bowls held at the venue across its history.
2016
A privately funded ~$350m renovation completes, adding the signature open-air canopy on four corner spires.
2022
The surrounding campus debuts the Formula One Miami Grand Prix on a temporary circuit around the stadium.
2024
Hosts the Copa America final (Argentina 1-0 Colombia) - a night remembered as much for the gate-breach chaos as the football.
2026
Set to host four group-stage matches at the World Cup, with natural grass laid over the usual surface.
THE ALMANAC SPEAKS

A versatile South Florida bowl that has worn six names and hosted six Super Bowls, a World Series, Grand Prix racing and a fractious Copa final. For 2026 it lays natural grass and shelters its crowd under that great corner-spired canopy while the pitch bakes in the open. No altitude, dear reader - just heat, humidity and the kind of summer storm that arrives precisely on schedule.

— PROF. INKSWORTH, ARCHIVIST 🐙
Ready.
Zone: Historical