Florida has nine major-league professional franchises, more than every state in the country except Texas and California. Add four Power Conference NCAA programs, Inter Miami CF and Orlando City in MLS, the Orlando Pride in the NWSL, fifteen MLB spring training clubs, and the marquee golf, racing, and tennis events that anchor the winter and spring sporting calendar, and Florida runs out of off-weeks. Every month of the year there is something to watch in person.
This guide is the whole calendar in one place: who plays when, where they play, what the tickets cost, and how to watch on TV or streaming. The data is refreshed monthly and after every league schedule release. NFL schedules land in May, NBA and NHL in August, MLB in February, and MLS in late December. Each table cites the league official site as the source of record.
Pro sports by season: every Florida franchise on one page
The table below collapses the calendar to a single view. Regular season windows are listed first, with playoff extension noted where it materially changes the planning horizon. Inter Miami CF plays its home matches at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale through the first half of 2026 and is scheduled to move into Miami Freedom Park later in the year.
| Team and league | Venue | Region | Season window |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins (NFL) | Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens | South Florida | Sep – Jan Regular |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL) | Raymond James Stadium, Tampa | Tampa Bay | Sep – Jan Regular |
| Jacksonville Jaguars (NFL) | EverBank Stadium, Jacksonville | Northeast Florida | Sep – Jan Regular |
| Miami Heat (NBA) | Kaseya Center, Miami | South Florida | Oct – Apr Playoffs to Jun |
| Orlando Magic (NBA) | Kia Center, Orlando | Central Florida | Oct – Apr Playoffs to Jun |
| Florida Panthers (NHL) | Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise | South Florida | Oct – Apr Cup run to Jun |
| Tampa Bay Lightning (NHL) | Amalie Arena, Tampa | Tampa Bay | Oct – Apr Cup run to Jun |
| Miami Marlins (MLB) | loanDepot park, Miami | South Florida | Apr – Sep 162 game season |
| Tampa Bay Rays (MLB) | Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg | Tampa Bay | Apr – Sep 162 game season |
| Inter Miami CF (MLS) | Chase Stadium then Miami Freedom Park (2026) | South Florida | Mar – Oct Messi era |
| Orlando City SC (MLS) | Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando | Central Florida | Mar – Oct Regular |
| Orlando Pride (NWSL) | Inter&Co Stadium, Orlando | Central Florida | Mar – Nov Defending champs era |
Power Conference NCAA: football, basketball, and baseball
Florida is one of three states that field four Power Conference NCAA programs: Florida and Florida State in the Southeastern Conference and the Atlantic Coast Conference respectively, Miami in the ACC, and UCF in the Big 12 after the 2023 realignment cycle. All four field teams in football, basketball, and baseball at a level that draws national broadcast coverage. Football tickets at Florida and Florida State are the hardest to buy in the state on a regular Saturday. UCF, by contrast, has the most reliably available walk-up tickets of any Power Conference program in the state.
| Program and city | Conference | Football season | Basketball and baseball |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida Gators (Gainesville) | SEC | Aug – Dec | Basketball Nov – Mar, baseball Feb – Jun |
| Florida State Seminoles (Tallahassee) | ACC | Aug – Dec | Basketball Nov – Mar, baseball Feb – Jun |
| Miami Hurricanes (Coral Gables) | ACC | Aug – Dec | Basketball Nov – Mar, baseball Feb – Jun |
| UCF Knights (Orlando) | Big 12 | Aug – Dec | Basketball Nov – Mar, baseball Feb – Jun |
Ticket price ranges: what to expect by team
The ranges below reflect a typical 2026 ticket market for a regular season game, single seat, on the secondary market within a week of kickoff. Marquee opponents (Cowboys at the Dolphins, Yankees at the Rays, Florida-Georgia football neutral site) push the ceiling meaningfully higher. The Marlins and Rays often clear weeknight upper-deck tickets in the single digits two hours before first pitch, the cheapest tickets in major American sports.
| Team or event | Cheapest single | Premium range | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins (regular season) | $45 | $200 and up | Premium |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | $35 | $150 | High |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | $30 | $125 | Mid |
| Miami Heat (regular season) | $25 | $300 | High |
| Orlando Magic | $20 | $200 | Mid |
| Florida Panthers (playoff) | $80 | $500 | Postseason |
| Tampa Bay Lightning (regular) | $35 | $200 | High |
| Miami Marlins | $15 (walk-ups often under $10) | $100 | Low |
| Tampa Bay Rays | $15 | $90 | Low |
| Inter Miami CF (Messi era) | $200 | $800 and up | Top tier |
| Florida Gators football (vs ranked) | $50 | $150 | High |
| Florida State football | $40 | $130 | Mid |
Stadium and venue guide
Each Florida pro venue has a personality. Below is a quick read on capacity, defining feature, and airport proximity for a visitor flying in for a single game.
Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens
Home to the Dolphins, the Miami Hurricanes, and the Miami Open tennis tournament. Capacity is 65,000 with a retractable canopy that shades the lower bowl but leaves the field open. Miami International Airport is about eight miles south, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood is fifteen miles north. Parking is plentiful but slow to exit. The stadium has hosted six Super Bowls.
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa
Home to the Bucs. Capacity 65,890. The defining feature is the 103-foot pirate ship at the north end of the stadium that fires cannons after every Tampa Bay score. Tampa International Airport is nine miles east. The stadium has hosted three Super Bowls and is also the home for the South Florida Bulls and the annual Outback Bowl.
EverBank Stadium, Jacksonville
Home to the Jaguars. Capacity 67,164. The north end zone has twin swimming pools that fans can rent for a game, the only such feature in the NFL. Jacksonville International is ten miles north. The stadium is undergoing a multi-year stadium-of-the-future renovation that will reduce capacity and add a translucent roof.
Kaseya Center, Miami
Home to the Heat. Capacity 19,600 for basketball. The arena sits on Biscayne Bay in downtown Miami with skyline views from the upper concourse. The Metromover and Metrorail both stop at Government Center, walking distance to the arena. The most transit-accessible major sports venue in Florida.
Kia Center, Orlando
Home to the Magic. Capacity 18,846. Centrally located just off I-4 in downtown Orlando, with the Lynx central bus station three blocks away. Theme-park traffic into and out of downtown is the main planning constraint.
Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
Home to the Panthers. Capacity 19,250 for hockey. The arena sits next to Sawgrass Mills, the biggest outlet mall in Florida, in suburban Broward County. Plenty of parking, no transit access. Pregame energy on a playoff night is among the loudest in the NHL since the Panthers ran consecutive Stanley Cup Finals.
Amalie Arena, Tampa
Home to the Lightning. Capacity 19,092 for hockey. Sits on the Tampa Riverwalk in downtown Tampa, walkable from the Channelside District, the Florida Aquarium, and a long row of riverside restaurants. The pregame walk along the Riverwalk is one of the better in-arena experiences anywhere in the league.
Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg
Home to the Rays. Capacity 25,000 (reduced for sight lines). The only domed full-time baseball venue in MLB, fully climate-controlled, an asset in July and August in Florida. The stadium roof and interior took heavy damage in Hurricane Milton in 2024 and underwent a full repair program before the 2026 season. Future of the franchise location is under active negotiation.
loanDepot park, Miami
Home to the Marlins. Capacity 36,742. Retractable roof, climate-controlled lower bowl, in the heart of Little Havana on the site of the old Orange Bowl. The Bobblehead Museum on the promenade level and the on-field home-run sculpture (relocated outside the park after 2018) are park-defining features.
Spring training: Grapefruit League, February to March
Fifteen Major League Baseball clubs hold spring training in Florida every February and March under the Grapefruit League umbrella. Camps run for about six weeks before opening day. The other fifteen MLB clubs train in Arizona under the Cactus League. Florida Grapefruit League towns include Bradenton (Pirates), Clearwater (Phillies), Lakeland (Tigers), Tampa (Yankees), Sarasota (Orioles), Fort Myers (Twins and Red Sox), Port St. Lucie (Mets), Jupiter (Marlins and Cardinals), West Palm Beach (Astros and Nationals), Dunedin (Blue Jays), Kissimmee and the surrounding I-4 corridor (Braves), and Viera (former Nationals camp, now the Marlins minor league complex).
| Metric | Spring training | Regular season | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Typical ticket range | $20 – $60 | $15 – $250 | Spring is cheaper |
| Stadium capacity | 7,000 – 11,000 | 25,000 – 45,000 | Spring parks are intentionally intimate |
| Player access | High (autograph lines, back fields open) | Limited | Family friendly |
| Game length | 7 to 9 innings, often 2.5 hours | 9 innings, ~3 hours | Pitchers rotated for workload |
| Weather risk | Cold snaps possible early Feb | Heat and rain late summer | March is the sweet spot |
Marquee annual events
Beyond the team schedules, Florida hosts a stack of annual events that pull in national broadcast attention and out-of-state visitors.
- Daytona 500. NASCAR Cup Series season opener at Daytona International Speedway in mid-February. The Great American Race. Capacity around 101,000 with infield camping common. Race weekend is a five-day event culminating Sunday.
- The Players Championship. PGA Tour flagship event at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach in mid-March. Home of the island green 17th hole. Largest purse on the regular PGA Tour calendar.
- Honda Classic. PGA Tour event at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens in late February. Famed for the Bear Trap (holes 15-17), a stretch of water-guarded par 3 and par 4 holes that routinely makes or breaks contenders.
- Arnold Palmer Invitational. PGA Tour event at Bay Hill Club and Lodge in Orlando in mid-March. One of the eight elevated signature events on the PGA Tour calendar with a smaller field and higher purse.
- Miami Open. Tennis Masters 1000 event at Hard Rock Stadium in late March. Two weeks of best-in-the-world tennis on hard courts, with all-comer ground passes for the early rounds.
- Sebring 12 Hours. IMSA endurance race at Sebring International Raceway in mid-March. The oldest sports car race in North America and a round of the World Endurance Championship. Spectator infield camping is a Sebring tradition going back to 1952.
- High school football state championships. The Florida High School Athletic Association runs all classifications at a single neutral site in early December. Recent host venues include Hard Rock Stadium and DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale.
Where to watch on TV and streaming
Broadcast rights for the big four professional leagues have shifted toward streaming over the past three years. The 2026 picture is a hybrid: regional sports networks still carry most local broadcasts for MLB, NBA, and NHL, while national windows split between cable (ESPN, TNT) and broadcast (CBS, Fox, ABC, NBC). MLS moved entirely to Apple TV+ in 2023.
| League | National TV | Streaming | Florida local |
|---|---|---|---|
| NFL | CBS, Fox, NBC, ESPN, ABC | Amazon Thursday Night, Netflix selected windows | CBS or Fox most Sundays for Florida teams |
| NBA | ESPN, ABC, TNT through 2025, then NBC, Amazon, ESPN starting 2025-26 | Max (TNT games), NBC streaming via Peacock | Bally Sports Sun (Heat, Magic) |
| NHL | ESPN, TNT, ABC | ESPN+ for out-of-market games | Scripps Sports for Panthers, Bally Sports Sun for Lightning |
| MLB | Fox Saturday, ESPN Sunday Night, TBS playoffs | MLB.TV for out-of-market, Apple TV+ Friday | Bally Sports Sun (Rays and Marlins) |
| MLS | Apple TV (selected Fox Sports windows) | MLS Season Pass via Apple TV+ | No regional package, Apple only |
| NCAA football | ESPN family, CBS, ABC, Fox, NBC, SEC Network, ACC Network | ESPN+, Peacock | SEC Network (Gators), ACC Network (FSU, Miami), Big 12 (UCF) |
Best Florida sporting experiences for a visitor
If a visitor only has one or two games on a trip, the list below ranks the experiences that deliver the most distinct Florida flavor.
- An Inter Miami match in the Messi era. A finite window with the most decorated player in soccer history, in a 21,000-seat venue. Pay the premium.
- A Dolphins home opener at Hard Rock Stadium. September in South Florida is hot, humid, and theatrical. The retractable canopy shades the bowl, the pregame is loud, and an early-season win brings the entire region back together.
- A Panthers playoff game at Amerant Bank Arena. Two consecutive Stanley Cup runs turned a former hockey backwater into one of the loudest postseason crowds in the league. Tickets are pricey, the atmosphere is genuine.
- Florida Gators football at The Swamp. 88,000 seats, an evening kickoff under the Florida sun setting behind the bowl, and the third-quarter Tom Petty singalong. The signature college football experience in the state.
- The Daytona 500 weekend. NASCAR Speedweeks delivers five days of racing culminating Sunday. The infield is its own city for the week. A primer in American stock car culture.
- A Marlins game on a fireworks night. Friday night fireworks at loanDepot park is the cheapest fun in Florida pro sports. Family-friendly, climate-controlled, and tickets that often clear under $20 with no fees.
- A Grapefruit League spring training game in March. Open back fields, short ticket lines, and 75-degree weather. The most relaxed atmosphere on the Florida sports calendar.