AMERICAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE

(AFL) American professional football organization, formed in 1959 to rival the older National Football League (NFL). Three earlier organizations of the same name did not fare well, each surviving only one or two years (1926, 193637, and 194041). AFL teams in 1960, the first season of play, were the Boston Patriots (later the New England Patriots), Buffalo Bills, Denver Broncos, Houston Oilers, New York Titans (later Jets), Oakland Raiders, Dallas Texans, and Los Angeles Chargers. The Los Angeles team moved to San Diego in 1961, and the team in Dallas became the Kansas City Chiefs in 1963. The Miami Dolphins were added to the league in 1966. At first the NFL refused to recognize the new league. The two competed in bidding for players, but plans for merger were announced in 1966. In 1967 the first world-championship game, the Super Bowl, was played between the two league championsGreen Bay (NFL) defeated Kansas City (AFL), 3510. That year the leagues engaged in a common draft of players, and in 1968 preseason interleague play was begun. In 1970 the old AFL teams, with Cleveland, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh of the NFL, became the American Conference of a new 26-team National Football League.