If one wanted to hear Jimmy Cefalo, Joe Rose or Kim Bokamper as their game-day voices of preference as the Miami Dolphins National Football League team battled it out on the field, they’d have to tune to Audacy Corp.-owned AM giant WQAM or Country sibling WKIS-FM in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market.
Now, after seven seasons, the Dolphins radio flagship is shifting back to iHeartMedia.
The games were last associated with the company’s Miami-Fort Lauderdale stations from 2010-2015. And, in a turn back the clock move, the Dolphins’ flagship will be returning with the start of the 2023 pre-season in August to WINZ-AM “FOX Sports 940.”
On game days, Rocker WBGG “BIG 105.9” will serve as an FM broadcast partner serving the Miami DMA. It’s thanks to a multi-year agreement with the team owned by Stephen Ross and iHeartMedia.
WINZ and WBGG preceded WQAM and WKIS as the Dolphins’ home market radio homes.
The new deal holds the potential for some significant expansion of the Miami Dolphins Radio Network. According to a press release distributed Monday (1/30), the Dolphins plan to add affiliates in Hawaii and in Puerto Rico. The length of the new deal was not revealed, nor were any terms.
This would add on to existing partnerships with Good Karma Brands’ WUUB-FM “ESPN 106.3” in West Palm Beach and Cox Media Group’s WDBO-AM in Orlando, in addition to Beasley Media Group’s WRXK “96 K-Rock” in Fort Myers, among other stations in Florida serving as affiliates.
“We are excited about this partnership and honored to be the new broadcast home of the Miami Dolphins,” said Kevin LeGrett, President of iHeartMedia Sports. “The Miami Dolphins are the city’s premiere sports team and with the massive multiplatform reach and scale that iHeartMedia can provide, we have the ability to deliver great programming and coverage to millions of fans across the state and beyond.”
WBGG and WINZ will carry all Miami Dolphins football game broadcasts and play-by-play coverage as well as a pregame show, postgame show and weekly radio show featuring exclusive interviews with Dolphins’ personnel and guests from around the league. All shows will be available on the stations’ websites and the iHeartRadio app, and the game broadcasts can also be heard on Dolphins.com for those in the Miami market.
Additionally, iHeartMedia will produce Dolphins-centric coverage around tentpole events such as free agency, the NFL Draft and training camp. Additional Dolphins programming and talent will be announced at a later date.
“iHeartMedia Miami is thrilled to welcome the Miami Dolphins back home,” said Shari Gonzalez, Market President for iHeartMedia Miami/Fort Lauderdale. “It’s an honor to again partner with the Dolphins for years to come and to help expand the opportunities to touch the team’s local and worldwide fan base.”
From 1966 with the famed Mel Allen through 2001, the Dolphins’ radio flagship was WIOD-AM. In 2002 WQAM scored the team’s games in a three-year deal, the first of three stints at WQAM.
