Miami HEAT homepage redesign

A homepage built to move at game speed

I helped redesign the Miami HEAT homepage as a flexible publishing system for game days. The new structure put schedules and tickets first, gave marketing room for memberships and merchandise, and made live updates easier for the content team.

One homepage serving fans, marketing, and game day operations

The page looked static while the season kept changing

1. Problem 01

   Fans had to work too hard to reach the next game, schedule, or ticket action.

2. Problem 02

   Marketing had limited ways to introduce jerseys and memberships without crowding the hero.

3. Problem 03

   Content teams needed faster patterns for game status, player updates, and postgame changes.

Let fan intent and game state control the hierarchy

1. 01

   Now

   Show the current or next game, time, opponent, and most useful action first.

2. 02

   Act

   Keep Buy Tickets and View Schedule visible before editorial content asks for attention.

3. 03

   Follow

   Give scores, recaps, player stories, and team updates a dependable home.

4. 04

   Belong

   Introduce memberships, jerseys, and HEAT culture after the immediate game need is clear.

This priority model kept the homepage useful through different moments of the season. The content changed, but the decision order stayed understandable.

Put the most time sensitive information closest to the top

1. 01

   Campaign lead

   High visibility storytelling with direct actions.

2. 02

   Ticket Central

   Ticket options grouped into a clear decision area.

3. 03

   Shop Court Culture

   Products introduced without taking over the opening hero.

4. 04

   Flexible campaign modules

   Auditions, collections, and limited promotions could change independently.

5. 05

   Editorial and trending content

   Stories and video kept the homepage connected to the team beyond game results.

6. 06

   More HEAT

   Arena events, premium hospitality, food, and social channels extended the journey.

Design the homepage to change before, during, and after the game

The same game module carries three states. Scroll to move it from pregame to live to final. Neutral data is used throughout: MIA and OPP stand in for real teams, and no historical score is shown.

The component structure reduced the need to redesign the page for every state. Editors could update the content and priority while the underlying pattern stayed familiar to fans.

Make every game update clear, fast, and reviewable

1. 1

   Prepare

   Load game information, artwork, links, and fallback content before tipoff.

2. 2

   Verify

   Confirm opponent, date, time, ticket destination, broadcast details, and player references.

3. 3

   Publish pregame

   Move the game module into the primary position and confirm mobile behavior.

4. 4

   Update live

   Change game status and supporting links without rebuilding the homepage.

5. 5

   Close the game

   Publish the final state, recap, highlights, and related player content.

6. 6

   Reset

   Move the next game into focus and remove expired live messaging.

Every time sensitive module needs an owner, a source, a publish time, and a fallback state.

Keep players current without making every update a custom design task

Player card anatomy schematic. The image area marks where approved team photography is placed; no player photography is shown here.

Shorten the path from homepage to seat selection

Above the fold schematic, desktop. The game module carries more visual weight than the surrounding story rails.

Fans arriving with a clear purpose should not have to search through campaign content. A consistent game module and direct actions help them move from interest to the correct destination with less hesitation.

Add commerce without turning the homepage into a store

One focused product image slot

Shop Jerseys

Connect player stories and team moments to relevant merchandise using one focused image, a short label, and a clear shop action.

Shop jerseys

HEAT Membership

Give memberships a consistent place for benefits and sign up actions without competing with urgent game information.

See membership benefits

Each of these blocks used the same content, media, action, and timing fields. That is what allowed an audition notice, a City Edition collection, and a tax free weekend promotion to occupy the same slot on different days without a new page build.

The homepage did not need to explain every program in full. Its job was to establish priority, create interest, and hand visitors to focused destinations such as membership, tickets, and retail.

Commerce appears after the game need is answered. The modules should feel connected to the team story, not inserted as unrelated advertisements.

Build flexible sections with predictable editing rules

Consistency did not mean every section looked the same. It meant editors knew where to make changes, what needed review, and how the component would behave across devices.

Fast game day content still needs to be inclusive and dependable

Preserve the decision order on every screen

Responsive layout schematics drawn in code. Frames show structure and priority, not final pixels.

1. Reflow components instead of shrinking desktop layouts.
2. Keep ticket and schedule actions visible.
3. Crop player photography intentionally.
4. Avoid tiny carousel cards.
5. Preserve content priority when the layout changes.

A homepage that supports both fan urgency and publishing speed

The best sports homepage is ready for the next moment

Built for tipoff, the final score, and everything between

The final direction gives fans a faster route to what matters now and gives the content team a more flexible way to keep the Miami HEAT story moving.

Team and league marks are shown for identification only. Miguel Clavel contributed UX and web design, homepage content strategy, CMS component structure, live content operations, and quality assurance.