On March 7, 1990, Wayne Huizenga, CEO of Blockbuster Entertainment Corporation, announced he had purchased 15 percent of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins and 50 percent of the Dolphins’ home, Joe Robbie Stadium, for an estimated $30 million. Huizenga stated his intention to aggressively pursue an expansion franchise. MLB had announced a few months earlier that it intended to add two new teams to the National League. It was a foregone conclusion that one of them would be placed in Florida; the only question was whether Huizenga would beat out competing groups from Orlando and Tampa Bay. Orlando fielded a very spirited campaign bolstered by its family-oriented tourism industry. Tampa Bay already had a baseball park the Florida Suncoast Dome in St. Petersburg, completed in 1990. However, on June 10, 1991, the National League awarded a Miami-based franchise to Huizenga for a $95 million expansion fee. One name considered early on was the Florida Flamingos.

The 1997 World Series featured the Cleveland Indians, who were playing in their second World Series in three years. Their opponents were the Florida Marlins, who had set a record by reaching the Series in only their fifth season. The Marlins were underdogs, but they capped a stunning season by beating the Indians in seven games, becoming the first ever wild card team to win the Series. The final of Game 7 was decided in extra innings on an Edgar Rentería single. This is also the third and most recent time a Game 7 went into extra innings. 1924 and 1991 were the others, both times involving the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins franchise.

The 2003 World Series marked the 99th edition of the World Series. The Florida Marlins defeated the New York Yankees in six games, 4–2. This is also the most recent Series in which the losing team outscored the winning team. The Yankees lost, despite outscoring the Marlins 21–17 in the Series.