When Did the AFL and NFL Merge?

A detailed history of how and when the AFL and NFL merged into one league, including the effects of the merger on both leagues.

Introduction

In 1970, the American Football League (AFL) merged with the National Football League (NFL). The AFL was founded in 1959 and consisted of ten teams. The NFL was established in 1920 and had sixteen teams. The two leagues had been in competition for players and fans since the AFL’s founding. After several years of negotiations, the two leagues agreed to merge in order to form one league with two conferences.

The NFL-AFL merger was approved by the owners of both leagues on June 8, 1966. The first Super Bowl was played on January 15, 1967, between the Green Bay Packers of the NFL and the Kansas City Chiefs of the AFL. The Packers won that game, 35-10.

The First Merger Attempt

In 1966, the NFL and AFL reached a historic agreement to merge into a single league. This was the first attempt at merging the two leagues, but it ultimately fell apart.

The Second Merger Attempt

In 1966, the AFL and NFL reached a landmark agreement that would eventually lead to a full merger between the two leagues. The key provisions of the agreement were as follows:

-The two leagues would merge into a single league, to be known as the National Football League (NFL).
-The NFL would consist of two conferences, the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC).
-Each conference would consist of three divisions, each with five teams.
-The NFL would retain its existing structure, with each team playing a 13-game regular season schedule.
-The NFL Championship Game would continue to be played between the winners of the AFC and NFC.
-The two leagues would share television revenues equally.
-Each league would keep its own draft, but there would be a common draft pool for players who had not been drafted by either league.

The Third Merger Attempt

In 1970, the AFL and NFL completed their third merger attempt, which resulted in the creation of the National Football League (NFL). The two leagues had been trying to merge since 1966, but had been unsuccessful in their first two attempts. The third attempt was finally successful due to the help of mediator Judge David L. Bazelon.

The NFL was made up of the 26 teams from the NFL and the 10 teams from the AFL. The NFL then absorbed the AFL, with all of its teams and players becoming part of the NFL. The NFL Championship Game became known as the Super Bowl, which has been played every year since 1966.

The Fourth Merger Attempt

In 1966, the NFL and AFL agreed to merge, with a common draft in place by 1967 and the newly merged league to be called the National Football League. But the merger fell through and the two leagues continued to operate separately.

In 1970, they made another attempt at a merger, this time agreeing to merge on June 8, 1970. This time, it was successful and the two leagues became one, with each team having the option to keep their AFL or NFL affiliation.

The Fifth Merger Attempt

In the early 1960s, the National Football League (NFL) was on top of the world. But the rival American Football League (AFL) was gaining ground, and by 1966, the two leagues were locked in a bitter battle for players and fans. In an effort to force a merger, the AFL proposed a radical plan: each league would contribute two teams to a new “super league” that would play a round-robin schedule followed by a championship game.

The NFL refused to budge, so the AFL hit them where it hurt: they poached two of the NFL’s most popular teams, the New York Giants and the Pittsburgh Steelers. This move infuriated NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle, who saw it as a direct challenge to his authority. He responded by scheduling several “interleague” games between NFL and AFL teams, which were intended to prove that the NFL was superior.

But when the AFL’s Kansas City Chiefs demolished the defending champion NFL Green Bay Packers in 1967’s Super Bowl I, it was clear that the playing field had been leveled. Finally, in June of 1966, Rozelle announced that theNFL and AFL would merge into one league beginning in 1970.

The Final Merger

In 1970, the AFL and NFL finally completed their merger, creating one league with two conferences — the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC). As part of the agreement, the champions of each conference would meet in a playoff game to determine the NFL’s annual champion. This game would come to be known as the Super Bowl.