Football

In 1920, the Dayton Triangles were founding members of the American Professional Football Association (APFA), which changed its name to the National Football League (NFL) in 1922. The team played in the very first game between two league teams when they met the Columbus...

Thwarted in his attempt to buy and move pro football's Cardinals to Dallas, and later denied an expansion team for his hometown, Dallas oil heir Lamar Hunt formed his own league which began play in 1960. His team was the Dallas Texans (a name used...

The Polo Grounds was the name of four different stadiums in upper Manhattan in New York City, the first of which opened in 1880. The most famous incarnation opened in 1909 and was completely rebuilt in 1911 after a catastrophic fire. That Polo Grounds...

The Pontiac Silverdome, better known as just the Silverdome, opened in 1975 in suburban Detroit. Its primary tenant was Detroit's pro football team. They left for a new downtown stadium in 2001. The city's pro basketball team played there for a decade (1978-1988). Other...

One of the most famous ballparks in sports history, Ebbets?? Field was best-known as the home of baseball's Brooklyn Dodgers from 1913 to 1957. It was also the home field for five pro football teams: the Brooklyn Brickley Giants, Brooklyn Lions, Brooklyn Dodgers (later...

The New Orleans VooDoo played in the Arena Football League starting in 2004. After Hurricane Katrina damaged their home arena in 2005, the team suspended operations. They returned in 2007 for two seasons before folding. The franchise was revived in 2010 when the Bossier-Shreveport...

Often misidentified as the Honolulu Hawaiians, this charter member of the World Football League (WFL) was known simply as The Hawaiians. Though crowds were small, the team avoided many of the financial problems that plagued most of the league's other teams. In 1975, the WFL's...

The Pottstown Firebirds were members of the Atlantic Coast Football League (ACFL). A minor league founded in 1962, the ACFL served as a farm system of sorts for the NFL and AFL, with the Firebirds supplying players to the Philadelphia Eagles. In 1970, the...

The wild antics, fights, and use of flare guns, in the cheap seats at the "The Vet" stadium in the 700 level led to the first ever criminal court being established in a sports facility.

Memorial Stadium in Baltimore was an iconic sports venue that hosted a number of baseball, soccer, and football teams, and held many great memories for the town's sports fans. It's most notable tenants were the Baltimore Colts football team, as well as the city's...

Cleveland Stadium, also known as Municipal Stadium or Lakefront Stadium, was the primary home of their big league baseball team from 1932 to 1993 and their football team from 1946 to 1996. It was also home to the Cleveland Stokers soccer team, as well as...

Three Rivers Stadium opened in 1970 as the new home of the National Football League's Pittsburgh Steelers, as well as Major League Baseball's Pittsburgh Pirates. Similar to other so-called cookiecutter stadiums of the era (The Vet in Philadelphia, Riverfront in Cincinnati, etc.), Three Rivers...

Remember this championship team? When the Canadian Football League (CFL) decided to add teams in the U.S. in the early 1990s, Jim Speros acquired one for Baltimore. Abandoned by the NFL Colts in 1984, and passed over for expansion in 1993 when the Bombers...

Charter members of the World Football League (WFL) in 1974, the Memphis Southmen began as the Toronto Northmen. However, before the team could play a down, the Canadian government passed legislation to block any U.S.-based football league from operating in Canada. Unwilling to undergo...

Available in a tee on natural (tan), and white (tee, V-neck, tank, crewneck and hooded sweatshirt). The World Football League (WFL) kicked off in July of 1974 as a rival to the established National Football League (NFL). At first, it seemed like it would...

The Gladiators were one of four charter teams created to showcase the Arena Football League's inaugural season in 1987. The team played every season from 1987 to 1990, making it to ArenaBowls I and III, before relocating to Tampa Bay, Florida, where they became...

The Ottawa Rough Riders were established in 1876 and were one of the longest running professional sports teams in North America. They adopted the Rough Riders nickname in 1931, they were charter members of the Canadian Football League (CFL) formed in 1958. The club...

The Orlando Thunder were members of the World League of American Football (WLAF) for that circuit's 1991 and 1992 seasons. They played their home games at the Florida Citrus Bowl.

Competing in the Interstate Football League, the Frederick Falcons began semipro football play in 1968.  OS16904

The Philadelphia Bell were a franchise in the World Football League which began play in 1974. The Bell folded, along with the rest of the league, halfway through the 1975 campaign.

In 1920, the Dayton Triangles were founding members of the American Professional Football Association (APFA). The team played in the very first game between two league teams when they met the Columbus Panhandles on October 3, 1920 in Dayton's Triangle Park. They played their home...

The Portsmouth Spartans were established in 1928 and played in pro football's national league starting in 1930. In 1934, the team was bought and relocated to Detroit, where they became the Lions.

The original Bills football team was established in 1946 in Buffalo as the Bisons in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). In 1947, after a name-the-team contest, the new name was selected. In 1949, the NFL absorbed several AAFC teams but, oddly, the Bills were...

The first three pro football teams to call Dallas home played in the Cotton Bowl, starting with the 1952 Dallas Texans. The city's surviving gridiron squad, the Cowboys, moved into Texas Stadium in 1971. The facility's most unique feature is the hole in the...

The Las Vegas Posse played one season (1994) in the Canadian Football League before packing their bags and heading to South Florida. Renamed the Miami Manatees, they were set to return for the 1996 campaign. However, they never played a down in the Sunshine...

The Chicago Fire were charter members of the World Football League in 1974. The team started off well, posting a 7-2 record in the first half of the season and drawing an average of 34,000 fans to Soldier Field. However, after a 10-game losing...

The Providence Steam Rollers played in the NFL from 1925 to 1931. In 1928, they became the first football team from New England to win a league title. They remain the last defunct team to win an NFL championship.

The Detroit Drive was formed in 1988, joining the Arena Football League for that circuit's second season. The team played in the Motor City's Joe Louis Arena through the 1993 season, winning four AFL championships. The team moved to Worcester, MA in 1994 and...

The St. Louis NFL team that nearly was. After losing the football Cardinals to Phoenix in 1987, St. Louis sought an expansion team. In October 1993, Charlotte was awarded a team (the Carolina Panthers) but the announcement of the second team was delayed. Many...

The Texas Terror joined the Arena Football League in 1996 as an expansion team. They played their home games at the Compaq Center (formerly the Houston Summit). In 1998, the team changed its name to the Houston ThunderBears. While the team had the pro...