Monday Night Football Debut (1966)
The Falcons are the oldest major professional sports team in America with no championships.
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons were founded on June 30, 1965, and joined the NFL in 1966 as an expansion team.
Quick Facts
- Date
- 1970
- Broadcast network
- ABC (Monday Night Football)
- Key player
- N/A (Y.A. Tittle never played for the Falcons)
Lore & Background
The Falcons had their first Monday Night Football game in Atlanta during the 1970 season, a 20–7 loss to the Miami Dolphins.
Reader's Guide
The Falcons' current home field is Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which opened for the 2017 season; the team's headquarters and practice facilities are located at a 50 acre site in Flowery Branch, northeast of Atlanta in Hall County.
Did You Know?
- The Falcons were named after a suggestion by Miss Julia Elliott, a school teacher from Griffin, who wrote: 'the Falcon is proud and dignified, with great courage and fight.'
- The Falcons have appeared in two Super Bowls: Super Bowl XXXIII (1998 season) and Super Bowl LI (2016 season), losing both.
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