For Dolphans, A Super Dilemma
But rooting for the Jets means rooting for the Jets. Ew!
Getty Images
Perhaps after covering all the reasons you shouldn't root for the Jets today, we should call this the "Lover's Guide to the AFC Championship."
Lovers of the local economy, that is.
While the Jets stand as Public Enemy No. 1 for the Miami Dolphins and their fans, they also hail from South Florida's top tourist market and the country's largest population center. Add in the fact that the Jets haven't been in a Super Bowl since 1969, and experts say New York fans will pay heavily to get to the big game -- even with a scary economy."It's interesting: You have Dolphin fans that can't stand the Jets. But it's good for business," said Robert Tuchman, an executive vice president at Premiere Global Sports, which sells Super Bowl travel packages. "For Super Bowl, they're going to be all over the place. It will be 80 percent Jets fans, regardless of who they play."
But what, you ask, about the Colts? Can't we have our cake and fill hotel rooms, too?
Apparently not. Local hoteliers say two factors should keep Miami from pulling for Payton Manning: Indianapolis ranks 33rd among U.S. population centers, thereby awarding them a smaller fan base doesn't travel well (some of them are already admitting as much), and they already made the trip to Miami for the 2007 Super Bowl.
What makes the situation even worse is that, while Saints fans might drink Miami into a new tax bracket, tourism experts say they're just as likely to sleep in their cars (!) as they are to stay in New Orleans -- meaning the dream scenario, economically speaking, is Rex Ryan vs. the Brett Favre Media Make-Out Machine + Cheeseheads.
"They're dying to get out of there for a week,'' said South Beach hotelier Alan Lieberman of Minnesota fans. "The word on the street is the Vikings and the Jets would be best for business.''
Be that as it may -- and we can't blame anyone who wants to escape the frozen midwest -- that combination makes financial Apacolypse sounds downright delightful.
Nice try, hoteliers, but we'll go ahead and pull for the Colts -- and that Bollywood boost to make up for it.
Posted Sunday, Jan 24, 2010 - 12:35 PM EST
