Did you know the Kansas City Chiefs have Dallas ties? The team was formerly known as the Dallas Texans back in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
Lamar Hunt, son of oil tycoon H.L. Hunt, wanted to start a Dallas team within the NFL franchise. Unable to do so, he started a league — the American Football League — and a team for his town, called the Texans, in 1959. Four years later, he moved his team to Kansas and renamed them the Chiefs.
Fun fact: Hunt is also credited for coining the phrase “Super Bowl.” Just six years after relocating, Hunt’s Chiefs won Super Bowl IV in 1969.
Back in the Lone Star State, that opportunity to start a Dallas-based NFL team eventually went to Dallas businessman Clint Murchison, Jr., who came to own the team we now know and love: the Dallas Cowboys.
In the Cowboys’ first NFL season in 1960, Tom Landry was the team’s head coach. The team had a rocky start, with a 0-11 win-loss record in their debut season.
The Dallas Cowboys had their first winning season in 1966. Between the 1970s and 1980s, they became known as “America’s Team” after winning two Super Bowls under Landry.
Ready for some more fast football facts?
- Head coaches Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer lead the Cowboys to three out of their eight Super Bowls.
- The Cowboys became the first team to reach a value of over $5 billion in 2018.
- During the 1970 football season, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Dallas Cowboys were able to battle each other on the field in the Dallas Cotton Bowl. The Cowboys bested the Chiefs 27-16.
- The Chiefs have four Super Bowl wins across 65 seasons of play.
- American billionaire Clark Hunt owns the team, keeping ownership of the Chiefs in the Hunt family.
