First Professional Football Game
Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
On November 12, 1892, at Recreation Park a few blocks NW of here, the Allegheny Athletic Association defeated the Pittsburgh Athletic Club, 4-0. The winning touchdown was scored by William ("Pudge") Heffelfinger, who received $500 for playing. He was the first football player known to have been paid outright, and pro football traces its origin from this game.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
On November 12, 1892, at nearby Recreation Park, the Allegheny Athletic Association beat the Pittsburgh Athletic Club 4-0 in a game that quietly changed American sport forever. The winning score came from William "Pudge" Heffelfinger, a former Yale star who pocketed $500 to suit up—the first documented instance of a football player being paid outright to play. What had been a strictly amateur college pastime took its first step toward becoming a profession.
Why it matters
Professional football, now one of America's largest cultural and commercial institutions, traces its origin to this single paid appearance in industrial Pittsburgh.
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Related people
- · William "Pudge" Heffelfinger
Themes & tags
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