Elite seats - Sports - Brief Article

South Florida CEO, July, 2003 by J.P. Faber

* Think of it as buying fractional ownership of the finest suite for the 2003 football season: for a fee that's projected to top $60,000, the Miami Dolphins are offering ten memberships to their exclusive Club 241 at midfield in Pro Player stadium. For that price, the perks are extreme: each membership includes four seats at all home games, one away game trip and "all the bells and whistles," says Rick Lassiter, senior director of premium seating.

These include an open bar and a bounty of gourmet foods, including Beef Wellington, stone crab claws, roast pheasant and swordfish, as well as--should the mood hit you--standard game-day food, such as hotdogs and chicken fingers. The suite itself, some 1,300 square feet of luxury adjacent to that of Dolphins' owner H. Wayne Huizenga, includes a private bathroom (with game-play monitor), multiple TVs and a staff of three: bartender, in-seat attendant and food station carver. There's more: regular visits by Dolphin cheerleaders and team alumni, access to the playing field, Dolphin memorabilia and use of the suite for corporate events on non-game days. Lassiter says the Dolphins expect the memberships to be picked up by corporations and affluent individuals, in lieu of the premium $150,000 boxes, which are already spoken for. "I envision this for an executive who is going to rotate those three other tickets for guests and business clients," he says. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience for a lot of people." And then there are the other members of Club 241 to consider, in what may be the ultimate networking opportunity. Interested? Contact Lassiter at 305-623-6288 or via rlassiter@proplayerstadium.com.