![\"Miami-Dade](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/MIA_109BCC060202NEWPPP.JPG\" "\\"Miami-Dade")
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Miami-Dade County Commission Chairman Anthony Rodriguez\u2019s political action committee, A Bolder Florida, recently reported a $38,500 in-kind donation of soccer tickets from the county-funded Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau.<\/p>\n
Pedro Portal<\/p>\n
pportal@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
Reality Check<\/a> is a Herald series holding those in power to account and shining a light on their decisions. Have a suggestion for a future story? Email our journalists at tips@miamiherald.com.<\/a><\/p>\n A political action committee supporting the chair of the Miami-Dade County Commission secured a gift of $38,500 worth of soccer tickets from the county\u2019s tax-funded tourism bureau in the days ahead of two sold-out World Cup matches in Miami Gardens.<\/p>\n On June 26, the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau<\/a> (GMCVB) was listed as the in-kind donor of the tickets for a fundraiser for A Bolder Florida, the PAC for Commission Chair Anthony Rodriguez. The bureau confirmed the gift on Friday, saying it consisted of 11 tickets to a World Cup match.<\/p>\n \u201cWe were asked by Chairman Rodriguez for tickets to one of the World Cup matches,\u201d David Whitaker, chief executive of the GMCVB, said in an email Friday. \u201cWe had access to tickets as part of our overall sponsorship and sponsor benefits with the local organizing effort.\u201d<\/p>\n The nonprofit tourism bureau relies on government funding for the $49 million budget the organization reported in its 2024 tax return. In the current county budget, the Visitors Bureau is set to receive $37 million from the county\u2019s hotel taxes \u2014 an allocation approved by the County Commission that Rodriguez leads.<\/p>\n Rodriguez, the most prolific fundraiser in county government<\/a> with a war chest of about $4 million, was automatically reelected to a second term on June 9 when no challenger filed to run against him.<\/p>\n The donated tickets are listed on Bolder Florida\u2019s campaign-finance report, but the disclosure for the June 26 contribution does not include details beyond \u201ctix to soccer game for fundraising event.\u201d In his email, Whitaker did not identify which World Cup match the tickets were for but said each was estimated to be worth $3,500. He said the GMCVB did not pay for the tickets, but they were given to the bureau as part of its role as a sponsor of the local World Cup Host Committee.<\/p>\n The day after the June 26 entry of the GMCVB\u2019s ticket donation to Rodriguez\u2019s PAC, Hard Rock Stadium played host to a sold-out match between Colombia and Portugal<\/a>. A week later, Argentina fielded Lionel Messi against Cape Verde<\/a>, one of the most popular underdogs in this year\u2019s World Cup.<\/p>\n Political committees often will secure tickets to a popular sporting contest or concert, then invite donors to spend big to attend the event with the politician<\/a>. In this case, A Bolder Florida reported no cost for the tickets because they were donated \u2014 or given \u201cin-kind\u201d from the GMCVB.<\/p>\n Rodriguez, who is the chair of A Bolder Florida, did not respond to a request for comment. In his email, Whitaker said the bureau also gave two World Cup tickets to Miami-Dade Commissioner Keon Hardemon, who is a board member of the GMCVB.<\/p>\n With six months left to go, the tourism bureau\u2019s donation of $38,500 worth of tickets is the single largest donation to Rodriguez\u2019s PAC in 2026.<\/p>\n