NBA side Miami Heat will be rebranded as Vice City for a basketball game in collaboration with Rockstar and its GTA 6 marketing efforts.
On 18th November 2026, the day before GTA 6 launches, the team takes on Milwaukee Bucks at the Kaseya Center, and the court will be themed around the video game version of the place and GTA 6’s pink marketing tones. The players will play in a custom kit (that’s yet to be revealed), and there’ll be different events and activities taking place on the night, along with “special programming”.
Bright lights. Vice City.
A Night in Vice City tips off November 18. pic.twitter.com/zZGGcrYyiS
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) October 2, 2026
Here are the visual teasers of what the court will look like, and a dark picture of the shirt. I presume the kit will be pink:
Currently, the “Welcome to Vice City” marketing slogan is being projected onto the roof of the basketball arena:
The headline pitch is this: “A historic partnership, when the HEAT as Vice City host a never-been-done-before event on the eve of the highly anticipated release of Grand Theft Auto VI.”
Obviously, there’s merch attached to this event. The new Vice City Collection offers t-shirts and snapback hats to buy, with the former starting at $45 and the latter at $50. You can get garments with “I 🩷 Vice City” and “Went to Vice City and all I got was this lousy t-shirt!” printed on them, or caps with the city name on the front:
Executives at Rockstar and Take-Two have previously talked up how they would try some unique ways of marketing GTA 6 in the lead-up to launch, and after the Extended Look that debuted exclusively on Netflix, this appears to be the next attempt. Completely changing the name of a sports team is a big deal, so for one night only, Vice City will compete in the NBA.
What do you think of this? Post your thoughts in the comments below.