NFL Founded: Professional Football Begins in Canton
Representatives from four professional football teams met at a Hupmobile automobile showroom in Canton, Ohio, on September 17, 1920, and established the American Professional Football Association with Jim Thorpe as president. Eleven teams initially joined, paying a franchise fee of $100. The league renamed itself the National Football League in 1922. Those early years were chaotic: teams folded mid-season, players jumped between clubs, and most games drew fewer spectators than a college contest. It took decades for the NFL to rival baseball or college football in popularity. The turning point came with the 1958 NFL Championship Game, televised nationally, and the merger with the AFL in 1970 that created the Super Bowl. The league now generates over $18 billion in annual revenue.
September 17, 1920
106 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on September 17
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