History of Football

Who Invented Football-

The sport we all know as football is more properly called gridiron football. Football is closely related to two English sports rugby and soccer. Gridiron football originated at universities in North America. Football originated primarily in the United States in the late 19th century. On November 6, 1869, players from Princeton and Rutgers held the first intercollegiate. While a number of Northern colleges took up the sport in the 1870’s, Harvard decided to stick with the hybrid called the “Boston Game.” In May 1874 the Harvard players decided they preferred McGill’s University rugby style.

In 1875 Harvard and Yale played their first intercollegiate match. Yale and spectators embraced the rugby style as well. Walter Camp was responsible from the rugby like game to the football we know today. Camp is also known as “The Father of American Football.” Camp was a Yale undergraduate and medical student from 1876 to 1881. Camp played as half back and served as team captain. Camp was the guiding force on the rules board.

The Intercollegiate Football Association (IFA) made two key innovations to the fledgling game. It did away with the ‘scrummage' or “scrum.” Camp introduced the requirement that a team would give up the ball after failing to move down the field in a certain number of “downs.” Camp introduced the idea for an eleven man team. In addition to his work with the rules, Camp coached the Yale team to a 67-2 record from 1888 to 1892. All while Camp was working as an executive at a watch-manufacturing firm.

The First Pro Team-

In August, 1920 seven men met to organize a professional football league. They met at Jordan and Hypomobile Auto Showroom in Canton, Ohio. The meeting led to American Professional Football Conference (APFC). In Pennsylvania in the 1980’s Professional Football was developed, all because local athletic clubs engaged in intense competition. In November 1892 former Yale football star William Heffelfinger became the first ever professional football player. Allegheny Athletic Association was made up of paid players by 1896. As football became more popular local semi-pro and pro teams were organized across the country.

Professional football proved itself a viable sport in the 1910’s. Canton, the premiere team featured legendary decathlete John Thorpe. Thorpe was an international star who brought legitimacy to professional football from his play with the Carlisle School; to his gold medal in the decathlon. Thorpe won his gold medal in the decathlon in the year 1912 and played outfield for John McGraw’s New York Giants. Thorpe and the Canton team drew crowds which created a market for Ohio and beyond. The league was struggling due to player salaries. The league also struggled because of a reliance on college players who had to forfeit their college eligibility and a general lack of organization.

On August 20,1920 the owners of four Ohio league teams met to create a new league. Thorpe was nominated to be president for the new league. The owners of the league teams hoped that with Thorpe’s fame that the league would be taken seriously. The league met again and changed its short-lived name to American Professional Football Association (APFA). The league then officially elected John Thorpe as the president. The APFA began play on September 26 when the Rock of Independence of Illinois defeated the St. Paul Ideals 48-0.

Where was the first NFL game ever played-

The first ever NFL game to place in Dayton, Ohio. The Dayton and the Columbus Panhandles was the very first match up which took place on October 3, 1920. Four thousand people paid $1.75 for admission. And in a 2005 Dayton newspaper the players were paid $50.00. Three factories founded by Dayton industrialists Edward Deeds and Charles Kettering sponsored the team first.