Who Started the NFL?

The National Football League was started in 1920 with eleven teams. George Halas of the Chicago Bears was the driving force behind the formation of the NFL.

Early Beginnings

In 1869, Rutgers and Princeton played what was considered the first ever college football game. However, it wasn’t until November 6, 1876 that a group of college representatives met in New York City to solidify the rules of the game. This meeting would give birth to the Intercollegiate Football Association and the first ever college football game.

The first professional football game

In 1892, William “Pudge” Heffelfinger became the first professional football player when he was paid $500 by the Allegheny Athletic Association to play in a game against the Pittsburgh Athletic Club.
A year later, in 1893, several more players were paid to play in a game between the Pittsburgh Athletic Club and the team from Latrobe, Pennsylvania.
However, it was not until 1902 that two professional football leagues were formed, with player salaries reaching as high as $300 per game.
In 1920, the American Professional Football Association (later renamed the National Football League) was formed, and by 1922 player salaries had increased to $1,500 per game.

The birth of the NFL

The National Football League (NFL) was formed in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association (APFA) before renaming itself the National Football League for the 1922 season. The NFL agreed to merge with the American Football League (AFL) in 1966, and the first Super Bowl was held at the end of that season; the merger was completed in 1970. Today, the NFL has the highest average attendance (67,591) of any professional sports league in the world and is the most popular sports league in the United States. The Super Bowl is among the biggest club sporting events in the world, and individual Super Bowl games account for many of the most watched television programs in American history, all occupying between four and five of the top ten spots in Nielsen’s respective lists.

The First NFL Season

The first NFL season was in 1920. The league was founded by George Halas and Jim Thorpe. There were 10 teams in the league. The teams were the Buffalo All-Americans, Chicago Tigers, Columbus Panhandles, Detroit Heralds, Hammond Pros, Minneapolis Marines, New York Brickley Giants, Akron Pros, Canton Bulldogs, and Dayton Triangles.

The teams

In its first season, the National Football League (NFL) had 14 teams playing a 12-game schedule to determine the league champion. The two teams with the best record in each of the two divisions, Eastern and Western, advanced to a championship game.

The schedule

The first NFL season was in 1920, and it consisted of 14 games. Each team played two games against every other team. There were no playoffs, and the team with the best record was declared the champion.

The schedule was as follows:
-October 3: Canton Bulldogs vs. Massillon Tigers
-October 10: Chicago Cardinals vs. Decatur Staleys
-October 17: Dayton Triangles vs. Columbus Panhandles
-October 24: Hammond Pros vs. Muncie Flyers
-October 31: Racine Cardinals vs. Chicago Tigers
-November 7: Rochester Jeffersons vs. Washington Senators
-November 14: Rock Island Independents vs. Minneapolis Marines

The championship game

The first NFL season was in 1920, and it consisted of only 12 teams. The championship game was held on December 18, 1920, between the Chicago Bears and the Decatur Staleys. The Bears won the game by a score of 7-6.

The NFL Today

The teams

In 1920, there were 14 professional football teams in the United States. In the National Football League’s (NFL) first season in 1920, these included the Akron Pros, Canton Bulldogs, Chicago Cardinals, Chicago Tigers, Cincinnati Celts, Dayton Triangles, Decatur Staleys, Hammond Pros, Massachusettsexport Brewers (Masseys), Muncie Flyers, New York Brickley Giants, Occidental College Tigers and Rochester Jeffersons. The Racine Cardinals and Rock Island Independents had joined by the end of the 1920 season, bringing the total number of NFL teams to 16.

The schedule

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 professional sports leagues in North America, and the highest professional level of American football in the world. The NFL today is the product of numerous mergers and relinquishments. From its humble beginnings to today’s multibillion-dollar industry, here’s a look at how pro football has become America’s favorite pastime.

The championship game

The first official NFL championship game was held in 1933, when the Chicago Bears defeated the New York Giants 32-7 at Wrigley Field. This event is widely considered to be the birth of the modern NFL. The championship game was not held again until 1936, after a four-year drought caused by financial problems within the league. From 1936 onward, the championship game has been held every year except for 1942, when it was cancelled due to World War II. In 1967, the NFL and AFL merged together, and since then the championship game has been known as the Super Bowl.