Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Dolphins secure 2020 home game in London
INDIANAPOLIS – The mystery of whether the Miami Dolphins would be hosting a home game in London or Mexico City in 2020 has been solved.
The NFL announced on Friday that the Arizona Cardinals will be the home team for the NFL’s International Series in Mexico City this season, which means by default the Dolphins will be playing one of their eight home games in London to ensure the franchise remains in the mix to host more Super Bowls this decade.
The Dolphins’ opponent for the game will be announced at a later date.
Teams bidding on Super Bowls are required to host an international game every five years. South Florida, which hosted Super Bowl 54 in January, will likely bid to host the NFL’s biggest game in 2025 and 2026.
The Dolphins are no strangers to the NFL International Series. In fact, they have played in London four times and Mexico once.
The Dolphins haven’t fared well in their previous trips to London, going 1-3. They suffered lopsided losses to the New Orleans Saints (20-0) in 2017 and New York Jets (27-14) in 2015 after routing the Oakland Raiders, 38-14, in 2014. They also lost to the New York Giants, 13-10, in 2007 — the first NFL regularseason game played outside of North America.
The Dolphins have never played a regular-season game in Mexico, but played the Denver Broncos in a preseason exhibition at Azteca Stadium in 1997.
The release of the 2020 NFL schedule is still about three months away, but there is no mystery about who the Dolphins will face next season.
The Dolphins will play road games against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Denver Broncos, Las Vegas
Raiders, Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers, along with their usual games against their AFC East opponents — the Buffalo Bills, New England Patriots and New York Jets.
As for the Dolphins’ possible opponent in London, their home schedule consists of games against the Cincinnati Bengals, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers, Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks, along with the Bills, Patriots and Jets.
Miami hosting the Chiefs in London would create a major international buzz because of Miami’s overseas appeal, which stems from the Dan Marino era, and the fact Kansas City is the reigning Super Bowl champions.
The intent of the NFL’s International Series is to grow the league’s audience and strengthen its worldwide appeal — so the league typically tries to schedule as big a game as it can in London.