Timeline: The early history of football

Jan 1, 1823

First person picking up a ball and running

One precursor to Walter Camp's influence was William Ebb Ellis, a student at the Rugby School in England. In 1823, Ellis was the first person noted for picking up the ball during the soccer game and running with it, thereby breaking and changing the rules

Jan 1, 1876

rules of football

In 1876, at the Massasoit convention, the first attempts at writing rules the line of scrimmage
11 on a team instead of 15
created the quarterback and center positions
forward pass
standardized the scoring system, numerical scoring
created the safety, interference, penalties, and the neutral zone
tackling as low as the knee was permitted - 1888
a touchdown increased in value to six points and field goals went down to three points - 1912

Jan 1, 1879

the invention of football

American football was started in 1879

Jan 1, 1892

william "pudge" Heffelfingerer's $500 contract

The origin of professional football can be traced back to 1892, with William "Pudge" Heffelfinger's $500 contract to play in a game for the Allegheny Athletic Association against the Pittsburgh Athletic Club. In 1920 the American Professional Football Association was formed