What Year Did the NFL Start?

The National Football League was established in 1920.

The Early Years

The National Football League was formed in 1920, making it 97 years old as of this writing. However, professional football dates back even further than that. In fact, the first professional football game was played in 1892. So, the NFL has a long and storied history. Let’s take a look at some of the most important moments in NFL history.

The first professional football game

The first professional football game was played on November 12, 1892 between the Allegheny Athletic Association and the Pittsburgh Athletic Club. William Heffelfinger was paid $500 to play for the Allegheny Athletic Association, making him the first professional football player.

The founding of the NFL

The National Football League (NFL) was founded in 1920, when eleven clubs from four states (Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts) met in Canton, Ohio, to form the American Professional Football Association. The first NFL game took place on October 3, 1920, when the Dayton Triangles defeated the Columbus Panhandles 14-0. The league continued to grow in popularity and by 1922 there were 22 teams. In 1925, the NFL underwent its first major expansion, adding ten new teams. Among these new franchises were the Chicago Bears and the Chicago Cardinals (now the Arizona Cardinals).

The Modern NFL

The first Super Bowl

The first Super Bowl was played on January 15, 1967. The Green Bay Packers, led by quarterback Bart Starr, defeated the Kansas City Chiefs, 35-10. The game was held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and was attended by over 61,000 fans.

The current NFL landscape

The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league consisting of 32 teams, divided equally between the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC). The NFL is one of the four major North American professional sports leagues, the highest professional level of American football in the world, the wealthiest professional sport league by revenue, and the sport league with the most valuable teams. The NFL’s 17-week regular season runs from early September to late December, with each team playing 16 games and having one bye week. Following the conclusion of the regular season, six teams from each conference (four division winners and two wild card teams) advance to the playoffs, a single-elimination tournament culminating in the Super Bowl, which is usually held on the first Sunday in February and is played between the champions of the NFC and AFC.

The league was founded on August 20, 1920, as the American Professional Football Association (APFA) before renaming itself as the National Football League for the 1922 season. The NFL considered merger proposals from its smaller rival at various times in its early years, but those attempts failed. In 1924, at Canton Bulldogs owner Ralph Hay’s suggestion who also served as APFA president that year,[12] representatives of both leagues attended a meeting to consider a merger.[13][14][15] At first they only considered a merger with their major competitor; however they eventually agreed to merge under common leadership with Hay becoming head of both leagues: he was elected NFL president while relinquishing his role as APFA president.[16][17] In 1925,[18] after much discussion about realignment and taxation of player salaries,[19][20] an agreement was reached: seven teams from RFPA would join thirteen APFA clubs;[21][22][23] thus increasing membership to twenty. The 2018 NFL season is scheduled to begin on September 6, 2018 withthe regular season culminating with Super Bowl LIII on February 3 2019 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta Georgia.