National Football League in Birmingham

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At numerous times the National Football League and its pre-merger sibling the American Football League have considered the Birmingham as a possible city for relocation of an existing or expansion for a new franchise.

Boston Patriots (1968)

When Legion Field substituted for Fenway Park as home turf for the Boston Patriots' 1968 home opener against the New York Jets, Birmingham was viewed as a potential relocation city for the AFL franchise if a new stadium was not constructed in Massachusetts.

1974

Frank Thomas Jr and Harold Blach made a formal presentation on behalf of Birmingham at the NFL's 1974 winter meeting in Miami, Florida. Although the prospect of being awarded a franchise was remote, they hoped to at least secure a pledge to consider Birmingham for the 1978 or 1979 Pro Bowl. Their efforts had previously been complicated by the Park Board's willingness to give the WFL's Birmingham Americans an exclusive contract for Legion Field.

Minnesota Vikings (1998)

In 1998 Larry Lemak made a failed bid to purchase the Minnesota Vikings and move them into the proposed domed stadium envisioned as part of the MAPS project. The franchise was subsequently purchased by Red McCombs and remained in Minneapolis.

Oakland Raiders (2019)

As a result on an on-going stadium dispute in Oakland, and their new facility in Las Vegas unavailable until the 2020 season, the Raiders may be in need of a temporary home for the 2019 season. As such, in February 2019, Birmingham City Councilor William Parker stated publicly his interest in courting the Oakland Raiders to play their 2019 home games at Legion Field. On February 11, it was announced that Birmingham was working with Tucson, Arizona to possibly split the 7 home games between Legion Field and Arizona Stadium. William Parker and Tucson attorney Ali Farhang stated they homed the joint effort would lead to serious discussions with team ownership.

See also

References

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