Ralph Hay’s Showroom Meeting That Created the NFL
Pro football was a mess in 1920. Players jumped teams for more cash while owners went broke.
Ralph Hay, the 29-year-old Canton Bulldogs owner, had seen enough. On a hot September night, he packed 11 team reps into his Hupmobile car showroom in Canton.
Some sat on running boards with cold beers in hand as they fixed the sport’s future. Jim Thorpe, the world’s top athlete, was picked as president to add star power.
The NFL was born that night, though nobody knew what they’d started.
Today, the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton showcases this humble birth, complete with a vintage Hupmobile like the one that cradled the league’s founders.
Pro Football’s Money Problems Nearly Killed the Game in 1920
Football teams in 1920 threw money at players without any real business plan. Players jumped between teams whenever someone offered them more cash.
No standard rules existed for contracts, schedules, or even how to play the game. Owners competed so hard for talent they nearly went broke.
Football needed structure fast, or it would die before becoming a popular American sport.
Four Teams Met in August to Save Their Football Businesses
Ralph Hay called the first meeting about the growing crisis. The 29-year-old Canton Bulldogs owner and car dealer saw the need for organization.
On August 20, 1920, people from the Akron Pros, Cleveland Tigers, and Dayton Triangles met in Canton, Ohio. They formed the American Professional Football Conference as a starter group.
They picked Hay as secretary, letting him reach out to other teams across the Midwest.
Hay Sent Invites to Every Major Football Team in the Region
The young businessman contacted all the big professional football teams after the first meeting. George Halas, who ran the Decatur Staleys, got his invite in the mail.
Hay set the next meeting for Friday, September 17, 1920, at 8:00 pm in Canton. The response shocked everyone.
Eleven teams agreed to come, showing widespread worry about football’s future and agreement that working together was their best option.
The Car Showroom Became an Unlikely Birthplace for America’s Game
Hay hosted the big meeting at his Jordan and Hupmobile car showroom. The building stood on the corner of Cleveland Avenue and Second Street in downtown Canton.
When 15 representatives showed up, Hay realized his office was too small.
The group moved to the main showroom floor where shiny new cars sat as they started what would grow into America’s most popular sport.
Some Owners Sat on Car Running Boards While Drinking Beer
The September evening felt hot and stuffy in the showroom. With few chairs around, several team representatives made do with what they had.
Some sat on the running boards of the display cars, while others leaned against fenders. Hay brought buckets filled with cold beer bottles to keep everyone comfortable during the talks.
The casual setup contrasted with the big decisions they made that night about football’s future.
Ten Teams Stayed to Create the Association
Representatives from eleven football clubs came to the showroom: Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Dayton, Decatur, Hammond, Massillon, Muncie, Racine, Rochester, and Rock Island.
The Massillon Tigers changed their minds and left before the meeting started. The other ten teams went ahead with their plans.
Someone typed the meeting notes on Akron Professional Football Team paper. The teams came mainly from four states: Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin.
They Created Rules to Stop Players From Team-Hopping
The American Professional Football Association became official that night. The owners agreed to standard player contracts to stop constant team-jumping.
Each club promised to respect other teams’ player agreements. They created a plan for scheduling games against each other and picking a champion at season’s end.
For the first time, professional football got the structure it needed to survive and grow as a business.
The World’s Greatest Athlete Became the First League President
Jim Thorpe won the vote as the first president of the new league. The owners chose Thorpe because of his fame as an Olympic gold medalist and sports superstar.
His name brought instant respect to their new group. As a player for the Canton Bulldogs, Thorpe worked more as a figurehead than an active leader.
His celebrity helped convince fans and newspapers to take the new association seriously.
Teams Paid $100 to Join the New League
The APFA ran for two years with few formal rules. Each team paid a $100 fee to join.
In the first season, teams arranged their own games without a league schedule. The championship for 1920 went to the Akron Pros, who finished unbeaten.
The association started loosely, gradually adding more structure as it succeeded and attracted more teams from around the country.
The NFL Name Came Two Years Later
The American Professional Football Association changed its name to the National Football League in 1922. This new name came with more formal organization, including official league schedules.
Teams started appearing in cities beyond the Midwest as more fans enjoyed the sport. Profits stayed modest compared to baseball, but fan interest grew steadily.
The foundation built in that car showroom proved strong enough to support decades of growth ahead.
Only Two Original Teams Survived to the Present Day
George Halas later confessed that “none of us had the remotest idea what we were starting” at that Canton meeting.
His Decatur Staleys moved to Chicago and became the Bears, one of only two original franchises still in existence. The other survivor, the Racine Cardinals, eventually settled in Arizona.
Canton’s contribution to football history earned it the honor of becoming home to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A historic plaque now marks the site of Hay’s showroom, commemorating the night when professional football found its future.
Visiting Pro Football Hall of Fame, Ohio
The Pro Football Hall of Fame at 2121 George Halas Drive NW in Canton preserves the story of the NFL’s founding in Ralph Hay’s car showroom. Adult tickets cost $45 with special discounts available.
You can see the original meeting minutes from September 17, 1920 in “The NFL’s First Century Gallery” and check out the Founders Exhibit with its Hupmobile mural.
There’s also a historical marker downtown at the actual showroom site.
This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.
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