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3000 BCE
The Very Beginning of Sports
in Egypt 3000 BC it is believed as the first game played was a board game called senet. But the first actual mark sports had in history was in 776 BC. An athletic contest was held in Olympia and consisted of wresting, boxing, polo and religious ceremonies. -
550
Sports are Spreading
In c. 550 chess is first played at about this time, in India, before spreading west to Persia. -
Sport popularity is Growing
In c. 1590 tennis is so popular in France that there are now said to be 250 courts in Paris alone. -
Investing into Sports
In 1740 Jack Broughton a champion of England, opens an academy to teach 'the mystery of boxing'. Also in 1789 England's champion pugilist, the Jewish prize-fighter Daniel Mendoza, publishes The Art of Boxing. -
Professionals
In 1892 Pudge Heffelfinger becomes the first football pro when the Allegheny Athletic Association pay him $500 to play a game in their team. -
Offical Sports and League Creation
In 1898 US basketball becomes a professional game with the establishment in Philadelphia of the National Basketball League. -
Records Being Made
In 1899 Belgian racing driver Camille Jenatzy is the first to drive faster than a mile a minute, reaching 65 mph in an electric car at Achères in France. Along with that, Ranjitsinhji becomes the first cricketer to score 3000 runs in a single season. -
Icons in Sports
In 1914 George Ruth acquires the nickname Babe when he joins the baseball team the Baltimore Orioles. -
Current Salary of Athletes
The figures are staggering, with NBA's average player salary clocking in at $5.15 million, $1.85 million more than players in Major League Baseball who average close to $3.2 million a year. Major League Soccer rounds out the bottom of the list, with players making a relatively meager average salary of $0.16 million. -
The Start of Big Buck in Sports
In 1919 Boston Red Sox sell their star player, Babe Ruth, to the New York Yankees for $125,000