The NFL was not created by a single person but by a group of team owners who formed a new pro football league in 1920 in Canton, Ohio.

Quick Scoop: Who “made” the NFL?

  • On September 17, 1920, several owners of early pro football teams met in a car showroom in Canton, Ohio, to form a new league called the American Professional Football Association (APFA), which later became the NFL.
  • The meeting was hosted at the Hupmobile automobile showroom of Ralph Hay, who owned the Canton Bulldogs, so he is often seen as a key organizer of the league’s birth.
  • Legendary athlete Jim Thorpe, a star for the Canton Bulldogs, was chosen as the league’s first president, giving the new organization credibility and national attention.
  • The league officially changed its name from APFA to the National Football League (NFL) in 1922, a move recorded in meeting minutes when team owner George Halas supported the new name.

So, if you’re asking “who made the NFL,” the most accurate answer is:

  • It was created by a group of early team owners , meeting in Canton, Ohio, in 1920.
  • Ralph Hay helped bring them together and host the meeting.
  • Jim Thorpe served as the first president and public face of the new league.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.