Joseph "Joe" Robbie was an American lawyer

Lawyer

A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

 and entrepreneur

Entrepreneur

An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...

 of Lebanese descent.

Robbie was the original owner of the NFL football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 team, the Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins are a Professional football team based in the Miami metropolitan area in Florida. The team is part of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...

 (1966–1990). Coached by Don Shula

Don Shula

Donald Francis "Don" Shula is a former American football cornerback and coach.He is best known as coach of the Miami Dolphins, the team he led to two Super Bowl victories, and to the National Football League's only perfect season. Shula was named 1993 Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated....

, Robbie's Dolphins achieved a perfect season (17–0) in 1972

1972 in sports

1972 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Gustav Thöni, Italy** Women's overall season champion: Annemarie Pröll, Austria-American football:...

 and two consecutive Super Bowl

Super Bowl

The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...

 wins. Additionally, he built the US$115 million Joe Robbie Stadium (1987-1996) with private funds in 1987. It was later renamed Pro Player Park (1996), then Pro Player Stadium (1996-2005), then Dolphins Stadium (2005-2006), then Dolphin Stadium (2006-2009; 2010), then LandShark Stadium (2009-2010) and is now called Sun Life Stadium (2010-present).

Robbie had a small part playing himself in the film Black Sunday

Black Sunday (1977 film)

Black Sunday is a 1977 American thriller film directed by John Frankenheimer and based on the novel by Thomas Harris. The film starred Robert Shaw, Bruce Dern, and Marthe Keller and was nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture in 1978...

, in which he is interviewed about security for Super Bowl X

Super Bowl X

Super Bowl X was an American football game played on January 18, 1976 at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida to decide the National Football League champion following the 1975 regular season....

 (1976

1976 in sports

1976 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Ingemar Stenmark, Sweden** Women's overall season champion: Rosi Mittermaier, West Germany-American football:...

).

Robbie also owned the Miami Toros

Miami Toros

The Miami Gatos were a soccer team based out of Miami that played in the North American Soccer League. The club was previously known as the Washington Darts. After the 1972 season, the team was renamed the Miami Toros...

 and the Fort Lauderdale Strikers (later the Minnesota Strikers

Minnesota Strikers

The Minnesota Strikers was an American professional soccer team located in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area. The team played one season in the North American Soccer League and 4 seasons in the Major Indoor Soccer League....

) soccer teams of the North American Soccer League

North American Soccer League

North American Soccer League was a professional soccer league with teams in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984.-History:...

. Joe Robbie Stadium was one of the first major stadiums in the US designed with soccer in mind.

Honors and awards

For his contributions to the Miami Dolphins, and being the founder of the team, Joe Robbie became the inaugural inductee into The Miami Dolphin Honor Roll

The Miami Dolphin Honor Roll

The Miami Dolphin Honor Roll is a ring around the second tier at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, which honors former players, coaches, contributors, and officials who have made significant contributions to the Miami Dolphins franchise....

 on September 16, 1990 (eight months after his death).

For his contributions to soccer, he was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame

National Soccer Hall of Fame

The National Soccer Hall of Fame is a private, non-profit institution established in 1979 that honors soccer achievements in the United States.-History:...

in 2003.