The Miami Dolphins haven’t been able to say they can rub elbows with the most valued organizations in the NFL over the past few years in terms of value. One of the annual exercises of the summer during the dog days of summer is Forbes dropping their list of the most valuable NFL franchises and this year’s list further reinforces the fact that Miami still has some ground to make up in order to be considered one of the crown jewels of the league.
The Dolphins check in at No. 15 on this year’s Forbes list with a valuation of $3.42 billion. With a b!
The Dallas Cowboys unsurprisingly claim the top spot on the list ($6.5 billion), easily pacing the field. Only one other franchise, the New England Patriots, surpasses $5 billion.
But regardless of the mid-level valuation for the Dolphins, there’s still plenty of reasons for optimism about the future of the “business”. Most notably, Miami’s one-year growth of 18% is the fourth-highest of all 32 franchises; only giving ground to the Super Bowl champion Buccaneers (29%…Tom Brady and a Lombardi Trophy will do that for you), the Los Angeles Rams (20%) and the Washington Football Team (20%).
The Dolphins were also one of just 12 NFL franchises to close the 2020 year with a net positive operating income, as well.
Unlike the top of the charts, the Dolphins are in a fairly crowded field of teams and if they’re able to replicate their 18% enterprise growth once again and all other teams ahead of them were to replicate their own respective 2020 growths, Miami would be able to push themselves to the 12th overall spot, passing a handful of teams including the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers. Miami was 18th on Forbes’ 2020 edition of the list, too; so the Dolphins are an investment that is trending in the right direction for owner Stephen Ross.
Presuming the winning on the field continues, one would think that the growth of the Dolphins organization will continue to accelerate. And that’s an exciting proposition for all.