Venue News & Notes: Dolphins’ Home To Get an Umbrella?

A massive 621,000-sq.-ft. “umbrella” that would shield fans from rain is the centerpiece of a proposal unveiled this week for upgrading the Miami Dolphins’ home for future Super Bowls. No price tag was put on the open-air covering or other improvements for Dolphin Stadium. Also left unaddressed was the question of who would pay for it, as officials explore various options to have public funds underwrite at least part of the bill. “This is not a plan that has been priced out,” Dolphins CEO Mike Dee told a South Florida Super Bowl Host subcommittee appointed to review the proposal. “We’re not at a point where we’ve figured out financing or figured out how to make it work. But we want to leave no stone unturned to see how we can work it out”…

…If Jerry Jones called about getting his stadium in the Bowl Championship Series, BCS officials would at least listen. BCS Executive Director Bill Hancock said as much this week during the Football Writers Association of America’s annual awards breakfast. Arguably America’s most influential sports owner, Jones has shown an interest in filling his new Cowboys Stadium with premier college sports events. Can a move to get his stadium into the BCS be far behind? There are at least rumors that Jones might want to get his glittering, futuristic $1.2 billion building in the BCS rotation…

…For the first time, the NFL is selling fans access to the confetti-filled scene on the field after the Super Bowl. The NFL On Location unit is inviting 700 fans to buy an “Exclusive Postgame On-Field Experience” after Super Bowl XLIV on Feb. 7 at Dolphin Stadium. But these tickets don’t come cheap. Individual ticket prices at www.nflonlocation.net run from $5,749 to $9,799 depending on seat location. For that, customers get their game ticket, four nights of hotel accommodations, pre- and post-game parties, preferred parking, and other goodies. Field access after the Super Bowl is normally limited to players and their families, league staff, and TV crews. But the NFL is trying to grab a bigger slice of the hospitality market.