The World Football League was a professional American football league founded in 1974. It played a full season in 1974 and most of the second season in 1975. Its goal was to bring American football to a wider audience. The league placed teams in Baltimore and Honolulu, and the first game was played on July 4, 1974. Overtime was replaced by a sudden death period of 15 minutes. Its goal was to create a competitive football environment that would attract fans from all over the world.
Gary L. Davidson founded the World Football League
In 1974, Davidson was president of the WFL, but his leadership proved to be unsteady. The league suffered from an attendance padding scandal, which robbed the WFL of credibility. Gary Davidson resigned as WFL president after the 1974 season. He supposedly left for personal reasons, but it was forced by Chicago Fire owner Tom Origer. The World Football League was Gary Davidson’s last major sports venture.
The World Football League was born out of the need for an alternative to the National Basketball Association. The league began playing games on July 10, 1974 and consisted of twelve teams in three divisions. Davidson also introduced several rule changes to attract fans. Kickoffs were moved back 10 yards, goal posts were moved from the end line to the goal line, and missed field goals were returned to the line of scrimmage. A touchdown was worth seven points instead of six, and a team no longer had to pay a franchise fee. Instead, teams ran for an “action point,” which was the equivalent of a TD in American football.
Teams were based in Baltimore
The city of Baltimore has a long history of horse racing and breeding. This heritage has contributed to the names of many pro football teams from the city. Baltimore itself takes its name from Cecil Calvert, who was the second Lord Baltimore of Maryland. The Calvert family owned most of Maryland and established a Catholic sanctuary. The city was also known as Maryland after the English Queen Mary. Today, it is the home of the NFL team, the Baltimore Ravens.
The city also hosted many World Football League teams. The Baltimore Colts first played in Memorial Stadium in 1953. The NFL commissioner challenged the city to sell 15,000 season tickets in six weeks. The city exceeded the goal in just four weeks. In the following seasons, Baltimore had three teams, the Colts, the Ravens, and the New York Jets. Ultimately, the city was able to attract a large following and become a World Football League team.
Players were “pro rejects” from the NFL
The World Football League is a great place for amateur players to gain experience and acclaim. Most of its rosters are comprised of rookies and semi-pros from the Eastern ACFL or the defunct Continental Football League. Players in the World League can even win world championships. That’s a pretty good sign for the future of American football. But is the World Football League as good as it seems?
Overtime was changed to a 15-minute sudden-death period
Overtime was introduced in the World Football League in 1993. The original format was a five-minute overtime period, with each team playing with four players. The two-man advantage is now applied as five-on-three play. The format was also adopted by the ECHL and NHL. The World Football League, however, continues to use a five-minute overtime period.
Overtime was originally divided into two seven-and-a-half minute periods with a kickoff at the start of each half. In postseason games, a modified sudden-death period was introduced. Regular season games remained the same, but the sudden-death period was eliminated in preseason games. The sudden-death period was reduced from 30 to 10 minutes. The change in time is only permanent, but it will be the norm in future games.
Teams went out of business after one season
The World Football League was a failed experiment. It was founded in 1973 and played its first season in 1974. Its founder, Gary L. Davidson, had already worked with the ABA and the World Hockey Association. Although some teams eventually made it into more established leagues, the league failed to make a lasting impact. In addition, the league was plagued by financial problems and embarrassing incidents. In one case, the championship game of the World Bowl was canceled after one team owed $250,000 in back taxes.
After the failure of the first season, the WFL came back to life in 1975. While the league was expected to make a profit in its first season, the WFL failed to make it. The league lost $20 million during its first season. This made the World Football League one of the worst sports venture failures of the 20th century. Fortunately, the WFL’s second season was a far more successful success.
