Has the Florida Marlins' Fan Detachment Spread to Dolphins Fans?

Fact No. 1: The 2008 Miami Dolphins have surpassed everybody's expectations. They have all ready won four more games than last year's team. They are 5-4, one game out of first place, and are an incredibly exciting football team...With lots of young talent.

Fact No. 2: The Dolphins' 2008 attendance is horrible. They have only filled up 86.6 percent of the seats. This ranks them lowest in the league for percentage of capacity. 12 teams have reported attendance figures over 100 percent.

Fact No. 3: Every time a Dolphins game is on television, one can see rows and rows of empty seats!

What's happened to the once proud and visible Dolphin Fans? Is their poor showing the result of not making the playoffs in years and going 1-15 in 2007? Could it be higher ticket prices, the economy, or are people in Miami just fed up with professional sports?

The 2007 Florida Marlins, who drew over three million in their inaugural season, have, like the current Dolphins, reached the bottom in total attendance. The Marlins drew an average of 16,668 last season. 

The Marlins, unlike most other teams at the bottom of the attendance chart, had an extremely likable team. They were in the wild-card race the entire season and had a Cinderella aura because they had, by far, the lowest payroll in baseball.

So, in case you're not from South Florida, what killed the once interested Marlin fan? The answer is simple....Getting burnt by ownership not once, but twice. After both world championships (97 & 03), the owners broke up the team and didn't make a real effort to defend their titles...The fans got fed up!

Has this detachment, this "the hell with you" attitude transcended Marlin fans and seeped into the minds, whether it be conscious or unconscious, of Miami Dolphin fans?  Have Miami sport fans had enough of professional sports?

I'm not sure what will happen if the Dolphins continue a pretty remarkable start to their season, but I know that their attendance is horrible. I know that the stadium looks so empty that I can't even believe the attendance figures they release...But I might be wrong.

I don't really know if  the fans of Miami have decided they can live without attending Dolphin football? I don't know if they  have  found a better way to spend their money on Sunday afternoon? I don't know the answer to these questions, but I do know that the citizens of Los Angeles have decided they don't need a pro football team.

The Los Angelenos, like the people of Miami, were burnt twice by the hometown team. Two NFL franchises defected to other cities. Years later, there has still been no serious effort to replace the last one that left...In our nation's second largest city.

Has the general apathy for football affected the way fans in Los Angeles support their Dodgers and Lakers? NO, it has not...The Dodgers and Lakers both have long winning traditions, always have highly-competitive teams, and  L.A. is about three times the size of Miami.  

When the Dodgers play good baseball, they draw well. When they have an off year, they still draw well. The Lakers sell out every game.