The League: How Five Rivals Created the NFL and Launched a Sports Empire

You can't understand the NFL without reading about the Founding Fathers!

Very interesting book. If you are an NFL fan, you must read this.

Husband liked it

Compelling read on the history of football. I appreciate the detail on the lives and motivation of these early leaders as they helped to create what we enjoy today. They were imperfect, as us the modern product, but I had feelings as the author describedtheir inevitable demise. They believed in their product, sometimes against all odds

Enjoyable read. Goes through the founding fathers of the NFL, notably George Halas, and how they built a struggling, losing enterprise into one of America’s best and most profitable inventions. Early on, pro football took back seat to college, had little to no credibility, and owners lost money year after year. Innovations like the draft, radio and television deals, responding to challenges from rival leagues (and sports - namely baseball), overcoming segregation and so forth; the NFL has a very colorful past most of us weren’t aware of.

A comprehensive look at the history of professional football. If you like the game as it is today, you'll be surprised to learn of the struggles for survival the founders had trying to get the league off the ground. And they’d be surprised to see where the league is now with cable, streaming, merchandise and massive crowds. To say nothing of the massive salaries being paid to the stars of the game now.

I generally love reading about the roots of all things. This one is repetetive, a real slog. The subject matter, the main characters, could be fascinating in the right hands. This book feels rushed. Written in bursts, then theown together.

This book is for you if you like history and the National Football League!In this book, Bert Bell, the owner of the Philadelphia Eagles, George Preston Marshall, the owner of the Washington Redskins (now the Washington Football Team), and George Halas, the owner of the Chicago Bears, are just a few of the five persons mentioned. Tim Mara and Art Rooney are the owners of the New York Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers, respectively. The success of the NFL today can be attributed primarily to these five people.