HISTORY OF AMERICAN PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL

PURPOSE: To explain the History of American Football and how it has become America’s most popular sport. INTRODUCTION: American Football has been around since the mid 1800’s. The First professional teams were founded in the late 1800’s. At the time of the first pro teams, paying a player was considered to be unsporting and dishonorable. This shows how far the sport has come since then. This morning, I am going to cover the history of Professional Football from the 1800’s to modern times and how it has become America’s most popular sport. By the end of this presentation, you should have enough knowledge to understand where professional football originated from, how it transformed from the early days to today and what the sport means to the people of America. BODY: I. Football originated from Rugby and Association Football in the 1800’s. A. The first professional game was played on September 3, 1895 between the Latrobe Athletic Association and the Jeannette Athletic Club. B. The first wholly professional team was the Latrobe Athletic Association in 1897. C. The First Professional Football league was the NFL (not today’s) formed in 1902. D. Football moved to the Midwest and the “Ohio League” (NFL) came about. TRANSITION: This completes my discussion on the early days of football. My next point will cover from the early 20th century to the beginnings of the modern NFL. II. In 1919 due to expansion of various regional circuits, and rising costs, it was decided to form a league with enforceable rules. A. In 1920, the American Professional Football Association was founded in Canton, Ohio with Jim Thorpe as the first President. B. In 1932, the Chicago Bears and Portsmouth Spartans were tied for the best record and a playoff game was played to determine