football: Professional Football

Although professional football was played as early as 1895 in Pennsylvania, it was not until 1920 that national organization began, with the formation of the American Professional Football Association at Canton, Ohio. Originally consisting of five teams, the association evolved and in 1922 was renamed the National Football League (NFL). The professional game received a tremendous boost when Red Grange, a star halfback at the Univ. of Illinois, signed a professional contract (1925) with the Chicago Bears. Other college stars soon followed, and the public began to show interest in NFL teams.

In the period immediately following World War II professional football's popularity grew tremendously. A new league, the All-America Conference (established 1944), competed with the NFL until the two groups merged (1949). The American Football League (AFL; formed 1959) competed with the NFL during the early 1960s; the first Super Bowl championship game was held in 1967 between the NFL and AFL champions.

Four years later the two leagues were merged into the present NFL, which now comprises two conferences (the National Football Conference, or NFC, and the American Football Conference, or AFC) totaling 32 teams. The NFL season includes 16 regular games, after which the winners of the three divisions in each conference, along with two “wild card” teams (the teams with the next-best record in each conference) play a four-round playoff culminating in the Super Bowl.

Arena football, a form of the game tailored for indoor arenas, was developed in the 1980s, with the professional Arena Football League beginning play in 1987. The arena game has a smaller field (about a third as long) with narrow goalposts, and the field is surrounded by nets that keep the ball in play. The number of players on the field is less, the action more fast paced, and the scoring somewhat different, but play is in many respects largely similar to outdoor football. The league has experienced expansion and contraction over the years, with the greatest number of teams participating from the mid-1990s to mid-2010s.

Sections in this article:

• Introduction
• Professional Football
• College and Amateur Football
• Basic Rules
• Bibliography

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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