Hard Rock Stadium gets the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship Game

The College Football Playoff’s National Championship Game will be played in South Florida for the first time Jan. 11, 2021, the College Football Playoff announced Wednesday.

Since the renovation of Hard Rock Stadium, the Dolphins home since 1987, the stadium has been selected as the site of the NFL’s annual premier event (Super Bowl LIV in February 2020) and, now, college football’s annual premier event.

“We are impressed with the recent renovations to the stadium that has been host to so many significant college football games,” said Bill Hancock, executive director of the CFP, in a statement. “Of course, South Florida is a great destination, and the people from the Orange Bowl Committee have always been cordial and welcoming hosts.”

Tom Garfinkel, president and CEO of the Miami Dolphins, said in a statement, “We’re excited that Hard Rock Stadium will play host to the biggest game in college football. (Dolphins owner) Stephen Ross committed more than $500 million to make this a global entertainment destination and we are thrilled about the opportunity to showcase our venue on this stage.”

The Orange Bowl Committee will host the game. The Orange Bowl functioned as a semifinal for the College Football Playoff after the 2015 season and hosted the BCS national championship game in which Alabama routed Notre Dame for the 2012 title.

“We are thrilled to be able to bring the national championship game back to this area,” said a statement from Don Slesnick, president and chair of the Orange Bowl Committee. “While this was truly a collaborative effort of many entities, we felt that it was important for the Orange Bowl Committee to take the lead on putting this bid together as the organization that hosted the region’s previous 20 national championships.”

This story was originally published November 1, 2017 at 3:49 PM with the headline "Hard Rock Stadium gets the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship Game."