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American Football League

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American Football League
American Football League

The American Football League (AFL) was a professional football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when it merged with the National Football League (NFL). The AFL operated in direct competition with the more established National Football League throughout its existence. Initially viewed as inferior, the AFL began attracting top talent from colleges and the NFL by the mid-1960s, well before the Common Draft which began in 1967. In fact, even in its first year, 1960, the AFL signed half of the NFL's first-round draft choices, including All-American Billy Cannon, perennial All-Star Johnny Robinson, and Hall of Famer Ron Mix. In 1966, a merger between the two leagues was announced, but was not finalized until 1970. During its final two years of existence, the AFL won two upset victories over the NFL in Super Bowl III and IV, the former considered one of the biggest upsets in American sports history. When the merger took place all ten AFL franchises became part of the merged league's American Football Conference, while only the NFL retained its old name and logo. However, the NFL itself has licensed products (see External Links, below) which declare that the 1960-1969 American Football League was "the genesis of modern pro football".

Contents

[edit] League history

The National Football League had grown to become one of the most popular professional sports leagues in the United States. One franchise that did not share in the success of the league was the Chicago Cardinals, who were overshadowed by the more popular Chicago Bears. The team was reportedly for sale (with the intent of relocation), and one of the men who approached the Cardinals was Lamar Hunt, son and heir of Texas millionaire oilman H. L. Hunt.[1] Hunt offered to buy the Cardinals and move them to Dallas, Texas, where he had grown up. While Hunt negotiated with Cardinals ownership, similar offers were made by Bud Adams, Bob Howsam, and Max Winter.[2]

When Hunt, Adams, and Howsam were each unable to secure a controlling interest in the Cardinals, they approached NFL commissioner Bert Bell and proposed the addition of expansion teams. Bell, wary of expanding the 12-team league and risking its newfound success, rejected the offer.[3] On his return flight to Dallas, Hunt conceived of an entirely new league and decided to contact the others who had shown interest in purchasing the Cardinals. He contacted Adams, Howsam, and Winter (as well as Winter's partner, Bill Boyer) to gauge their interest in starting a new league. Hunt's first meeting with Adams was held in March 1959.[4] Hunt, who felt a regional rivalry would be critical for the success of the new league, convinced Adams to join and found his team in Houston. Hunt next secured an agreement from Howsam to bring a team to Denver, Colorado.[5]

After Winter and Boyer agreed to start a team in Minneapolis-Saint Paul, the new league had its first four teams. Hunt also approached Willard Rhodes of Seattle, Washington, but that effort failed when Rhodes was turned down by Husky Stadium and had no place for his team to play.[6] Hunt also sought franchises in Los Angeles, California and New York City. During the summer of 1959 he sought the blessings of the NFL for his nascent league, as he did not seek a potentially costly rivalry. Within weeks of the July 1959 announcement of the league's formation, Hunt received commitments from Barron Hilton and Harry Wismer to bring teams to Los Angeles and New York, respectively.[7]

On August 14, 1959, the first league meeting was held in Chicago, and charter memberships were given to Dallas, New York, Houston, Denver, Los Angeles, and Minneapolis-Saint Paul. On August 22 the league officially was named the American Football League. Although Bell had given his public approval, individual NFL owners soon began a campaign to undermine the new league. AFL owners were approached with promises of new NFL franchises or ownership stakes in existing ones. When those efforts were rebuffed, the NFL announced on August 29 that it would bring expansion teams to Houston and Dallas, to start play in 1961.[8]

Two more cities were awarded AFL franchises later in the year. Ralph Wilson, who owned a minority interest in the NFL's Detroit Lions, announced he was placing a team in Buffalo, New York after he had been rejected by Miami. Buffalo was officially awarded a franchise on October 28. During a league meeting on November 22, a 10-man ownership group from Boston, Massachusetts (led by William H. (Billy) Sullivan) was awarded the AFL's eighth team.[9] On November 30, 1959, Joe Foss, a World War II Marine fighter ace and former governor of South Dakota, was named the AFL's first commissioner. Foss commissioned a friend of Harry Wismer's to develop the AFL's eagle-on-football logo. Hunt was elected President of the AFL on January 26, 1960.

[edit] See also

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Gruver, The American Football League, p. 9.
  2. ^ Gruver, The American Football League, p. 13.
  3. ^ Gruver, The American Football League, pp. 13–14.
  4. ^ Gruver, The American Football League, p. 14.
  5. ^ Gruver, The American Football League, pp. 15–16.
  6. ^ Miller, Going Long, pp. 3–4.
  7. ^ "Kansas City Chiefs History - AFL Origins". Retrieved on 2007-02-07.
  8. ^ Gruver, The American Football League, pp. 22–23.
  9. ^ Maiorana, Relentless, p. 65.

[edit] References

  • Brown, Paul; Jack Clary (1979). PB, The Paul Brown Story. New York: Atheneum. ISBN 0-6891-0985-7.
  • Dickey, Glenn (1991). Just Win, Baby: Al Davis & His Raiders. New York: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich. ISBN 0-15-146580-0.
  • Gruver, Ed (1997). The American Football League: A Year-By-Year History, 1960-1969. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc. ISBN 0-7864-0399-3.
  • History: The AFL - Pro Football Hall of Fame link
  • Maiorana, Sal (1994). Relentless: The Hard-Hitting History of Buffalo Bills Football. Lenexa, Kansas: Quality Sports Publications. ISBN 1-8857-5800-6.
  • Miller, Jeff (2003). Going Long: The Wild Ten-Year Saga of the Renegade American Football League In the Words of Those Who Lived It. McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-0714-1849-0.
  • Shamsky, Art; Barry Zeman (2004). The Magnificent Seasons: How the Jets, Mets, and Knicks Made Sports History and Uplifted a City and the Country. New York: Thomas Dunne Books. ISBN 0-3123-3358-7.

[edit] Further reading

  • Jack Horrigan and Mike Rathet, The Other League/The Fabulous Story of the American Football League
  • Jack Orr, We Came of Age/A Picture History of the American Football League
  • George Sullivan, Touchdown!/The Picture History of the American Football League
  • Sal Maiorana, If You Can't Join 'Em, Beat 'Em: A Remembrance of the American Football League, ISBN 1-4107-4942-8

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://www.wikisportsmemorabilia.com/American_Football_League"
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