The Orange Bowl football game at SunLife Stadium
features the BCS at-large team vs. the ACC Champions with kickoff
scheduled at 8pm and tailgating parties in the adjacent parking lots
brewing all day long!
Originating in 1935 when the Bucknell Bisons
vanquished Miami's home team 26 - 0, this was the first football match
to be captured in a wire photo transmitted across the United States by
the Associated Press!
Today's Orange Bowl spans two counties with events
starting at New Year's Eve and parties proceeding through the game's
final minutes. The City of Fort Lauderdale partners with Ford Motors to
celebrate their Downtown Countdown - a FREE, 12 hour street fair from SW
Second Street to SW Fifth Avenue with family-friendly entertainment,
exciting activities and a lighted ball drop at midnight.
Meanwhile in South Beach, Ocean Drive is renamed
Orange Drive for three days when the city stops traffic from Fifth to
Fourteenth Streets to create an exciting New Year's fairground.
Bandstands are erected right on the sand to feature the "Jam on the
Sand" with big name celebrity guests alongside "En Vivo" - a live Latin
American event with legendary stars and dancers bringing a salsa beat to
the beach. The beachfront at Lummus Park comes alive with dancing, a
children's festival play zone, live broadcasts from all the major sports
networks and a "Gridiron Bash Pep Rally" celebrating the two
championship teams who will play at the Orange Bowl on January 4th.
Orange Bowl New Year's Celebrations take place on
South Beach (Ocean Drive from 5-14 Streets) and Fort Lauderdale (SW 2
Street - SW 5 Avenue) plus the big game at SunLife Stadium 2269 Dan
Marino Boulevard in Miami.
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