GTA 6 Marketing in Miami: The Vice City Sign, Heat Night and Beach Ads

What is Rockstar doing in Miami?Unconfirmed

Miami is the real city behind Vice City, and in the weeks before launch it has picked up a layer of GTA VI branding. The Miami Heat's Vice City game on November 18 has its own official announcement. Other activations are documented through local reporting, public records and photos posted by people in Miami.

The money figures in this page come from city and county records as reported by local and gaming press. Rockstar has not published any of them.

Miami Heat: A Night in Vice City, November 18

The Heat's event has an official campaign page. The team presents its HEAT.com/ViceCity event as a first for the franchise, timed to the night before Grand Theft Auto VI releases. The game is the Heat against the Milwaukee Bucks at Kaseya Center on Wednesday, November 18, 2026, at 19:00 ET. GTA BOOM reports that it airs on ESPN nationally and on WPLG Local 10 in Miami. Tickets are sold through Ticketmaster from the same page.

What the Heat have promised so far:

• A one-off court. The Heat will use a special Vice City court for this game only.
• A new uniform. The Heat promise a redesigned uniform for the event. When we checked on October 28 the design had not been shown, and the page only offered a sign-up for the "Uniform Drop."
• GTA food stands. Kaseya Center has Burger Shot counters at sections 105, 120, 308 and 324 and a Cluckin' Bell at section 325, both named after the series' fast-food chains.
• Merchandise. A Vice City Collection from the Heat's Court Culture line is on sale at the team store and online, with tees at $55 and a crop top at $45.
• Arena activations. The page promises activities inside the arena beginning on Opening Night and additional experiences at the November 18 game, with details to follow.

The Heat's own page does not name Rockstar. GTA BOOM, reporting on the team's announcement and its "A Night in Vice City" promo video, quotes the announcement as saying the game is presented "in partnership with Rockstar Games." GTA VI itself comes out the next day, November 19.

The Welcome to Vice City sign on the Kaseya CenterUnconfirmed

The most visible piece is on the Heat's arena. On September 22, 2026, a sign reading "Welcome to Vice City" with the VI logo was lowered onto the Kaseya Center roof by helicopter, according to GTA BOOM, which puts it at about 4,700 square feet. Rockstar Intel describes it as about a third of the arena's width.

The cost comes from county documents reported by Miami Herald reporter Doug Hanks: Rockstar pays Miami-Dade County, which owns the arena, $975,000 for the placement. GTA BOOM reports that because the amount stayed under $1 million, the mayor could approve it without a vote of the full county commission, and that the money is meant for a park on county land behind the arena. Rockstar has not confirmed the figure.

How long it stays is not settled in public reporting. Rockstar Intel said it was expected to remain until at least the end of December 2026; GTA BOOM said through at least the Heat's 2026-27 season.

Vice City umbrellas and chairs on Miami BeachUnconfirmed

Miami Beach is a separate city from Miami, and it voted on its own deal. On September 10, 2026, its commission voted 4-3 to let the city manager negotiate with Amplify Marketing, the agency working for Rockstar, according to GTA BOOM. The plan covers discreet "Vice City" or "VI" branding on the privately run Boucher Brothers beach chairs and umbrellas from mid-October to the end of the year, kept clear of lifeguard stands and of Art Basel in early December. The city was reported to be looking for $3 million to $4 million.

The vote authorized negotiation, not a signed contract. On October 12, GTA BOOM cited reporter Joel Franco, who was told by a Miami Beach official that the agreement had not been signed and that the planned October 15 start would "most likely not" hold. Two days later Franco filmed umbrellas with the VI logo and palm-tree art rolled up in storage boxes on the sand, with Vice City and VI chairs arriving. We have not found a report that the agreement was signed.

Street ads, a Weazel News van and Leonida platesUnconfirmed

Smaller pieces have turned up around the city since mid-October, mostly spotted and filmed by Joel Franco.

• Kiosk ads for in-game brands. Insider Gaming reported on October 20 that street kiosks were carrying ads for GTA's parody brands, including Pfister, Kowalski and Kronos, with the series' usual double-meaning slogans (Pfister's is "Go Topless"). A Weazel News van was seen too.
• Cars with Leonida plates. GTA Intel reports a convoy of six to eight real cars dressed as GTA VI vehicles, filmed in Miami and out to Key Biscayne on October 15 and 16. The standout was a Lamborghini Huracán in police livery with lights. Which game cars they represent is the outlet's best guess, and the builder has not been confirmed.

The City of Miami also had its own track. GTA BOOM, citing The Miamian, reported an ordinance from Commissioner Damian Pardo that would allow up to six promotional banners downtown between October 15 and December 31, at $202,000 each. A later GTA BOOM report says the downtown banner authorization took effect on October 15; we have not independently verified the final ordinance or whether banners have gone up.

Nine1Nine banner planes over South BeachUnconfirmed

On October 14, planes towing NINE1NINE banners were seen over South Beach. Nine1Nine is the nightclub from the trailers, and the stunt copies the shot in Trailer 1 where a seaplane tows the club's banner past the skyline. GTA BOOM, which collected the footage from Joel Franco and a Reddit thread, notes that it is not confirmed who is behind the flights. Our entry on the club covers the possible link to Miami's E11EVEN.

Who objectedUnconfirmed

Not everyone in Miami-Dade wanted the county dressed up as Vice City. In early September, Dexerto reported on a 19-page pitch the county had shown Rockstar on June 29, with ideas such as a "Vice City Airport" at Miami International Airport and wrapped Metromover cars. Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz answered: "Miami-Dade County is not Vice City." Commissioner Juan Carlos Bermudez asked for more transparency, and none of those ideas had been approved.

On September 18, Local 10 reported that county commissioners were raising concerns about the deal. GTA Intel reported that the commission would vote on October 20 on whether the mayor's team could keep negotiating with Rockstar, and that the rooftop sign would stay either way because it was already paid for. We had not found a reported result of that vote when this page was written.

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