What happened to the NFL's first championship trophy as well
Oct 16, 2019 5:51:39 GMT
mecano04 likes this
Post by hi224 on Oct 16, 2019 5:51:39 GMT
So The Brunswick-Balke Collender Cup mysteriously vanished after only one year, 1920. Founded in 1920, the American Professional Football Association (APFA), would later be renamed the National Football League (NFL) in 1922, making the iconic and mysterious Cup veritably the NFL's first championship trophy.
What I find intriguing is the following set of facts:
(1) Not only did it disappear after only one season (1920), there is only one known photo of the Brunswick-Balke Collender Cup in existence. And, shockingly, the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton does not have any (I presume original) photos of it.
(2) The Akron Pros won the Cup, and the trophy was presented to the team owners, Art Ranney and Frank Nied. But, like many teams of the 1920s, the Akron Pros eventually folded and no longer exist today. With only one championship year, the team saw a steady decline in play and financial support, changed their name to the Akron Indians for one season in 1926, then finally suspended operations in 1927 and officially surrendered the franchise in 1928. With no professional team in Akron since then, it is unclear whatever became of the Cup. Is it still sitting around in one of the owner's estates? Handed down to an heir, perhaps, who may not even know what historical treasure it is?
(3) The first championship was disputed, perhaps unsurprisingly so, as many early era sports fans will understand. Today, the Akron Pros are officially recognized as champions of the 1920 season, but their undefeated record also consisted of three ties: 8-0-3. Both the Buffalo All-Americans and the Decatur Stanleys (renamed the Chicago Bears in 1922) laid some claim to the league's 1920 championship since each team's clash with the Akron Pros that year had ended in a tie, not a loss. Because of this controversy, is it possible that the Cup was stolen by another team?
(A short bit of info can be found here on a video (2:17-2:32) commemorating the 100th season of the NFL.)
What I find intriguing is the following set of facts:
(1) Not only did it disappear after only one season (1920), there is only one known photo of the Brunswick-Balke Collender Cup in existence. And, shockingly, the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton does not have any (I presume original) photos of it.
(2) The Akron Pros won the Cup, and the trophy was presented to the team owners, Art Ranney and Frank Nied. But, like many teams of the 1920s, the Akron Pros eventually folded and no longer exist today. With only one championship year, the team saw a steady decline in play and financial support, changed their name to the Akron Indians for one season in 1926, then finally suspended operations in 1927 and officially surrendered the franchise in 1928. With no professional team in Akron since then, it is unclear whatever became of the Cup. Is it still sitting around in one of the owner's estates? Handed down to an heir, perhaps, who may not even know what historical treasure it is?
(3) The first championship was disputed, perhaps unsurprisingly so, as many early era sports fans will understand. Today, the Akron Pros are officially recognized as champions of the 1920 season, but their undefeated record also consisted of three ties: 8-0-3. Both the Buffalo All-Americans and the Decatur Stanleys (renamed the Chicago Bears in 1922) laid some claim to the league's 1920 championship since each team's clash with the Akron Pros that year had ended in a tie, not a loss. Because of this controversy, is it possible that the Cup was stolen by another team?
(A short bit of info can be found here on a video (2:17-2:32) commemorating the 100th season of the NFL.)