First NFL Franchise in Arizona
A legacy of grit in the desert.
The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. As of the most recent completed season, the team has played 106 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), with 38 seasons in Arizona and 20 seasons at State Farm Stadium.
- Role
- Oldest Continuously Operating NFL Franchise
- Founded
- 1898 (as Chicago Cardinals)
- First NFL Season
- 1920
- League Affiliation
- National Football League (NFL)
- Status
- Active
- Home Stadium Era
- State Farm Stadium (Glendale, AZ) since 2006
Lore & Background
The franchise was founded in 1898 as the Morgan Athletic Club. The team's most recent season was played under head coach Jonathan Gannon and general manager Monti Ossenfort. Quarterback Kyler Murray remains on the roster as of the latest available information.
In Their Own Story
The desert wind howled across the empty practice fields of Tempe in the late 1980s, a stark contrast to the icy winds of Chicago or the humidity of St. Louis. An old coach walked the sideline, looking at a faded photograph of the team from 1925. He realized that while the jersey colors had shifted and the city names on the map had changed, the heartbeat of this organization remained the same. It was the oldest pulse in the league, beating steadily through a century of change, finally finding its home under the vast Arizona sky.
Reader's Guide
The team plays its home games at State Farm Stadium. The state of Arizona lies entirely within the Mountain Time Zone; however, Daylight saving time is only observed within the Navajo Nation. As a result, all times prior to November 1 are aligned with Pacific Daylight Time, not Mountain Daylight Time.
Did You Know?
- The Cardinals are the oldest continuously operating professional football franchise in the United States.
- The team has called the Phoenix metropolitan area home since 1988.
- The Cardinals have played at State Farm Stadium since 2006.
- Kyler Murray has been the team's starting quarterback since being drafted first overall in 2019.
More in Honours & Records
Elsewhere in the Arizona Cardinals universe
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