Early Sports Timeline

First Professional Baseball Team

May 4, 1869

The Cincinnati Red Stockings are considered the first professional team because they were the first to pay players.

First College Football Game

Nov 6, 1869

Rutgers vs. New Jersey in 1896 is considered the first American college football game, though the rules were quite different than they are now.

First International Soccer Game

Nov 30, 1872

England played Scotland, and they tied 0-0 in the first-ever official international soccer game.

First Wimbledon Tennis Tournament

Jul 9, 1877

The All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club hosted the first Gentleman Singles Tournament in Wimbledon.

Softball Invented

Nov 24, 1887

At the Farragut Boat Club on Thanksgiving Day 1887, a group of men gathered and played a version of "indoor baseball" which has now become "softball."

Volleyball Invented

Feb 9, 1895

William Morgan, who directed a YMCA in Massachusetts, created volleyball as an alternative to basketball.

First 5 v. 5 College Basketball Game

Jan 18, 1896

Chicago defeated the University of Iowa 15-12 in the first intercollegiate game played with the modern 5 man lineups.

First Modern Olympic Games

Apr 6, 1896

The first of the modern summer Olympic games was hosted in Athens, Greece in 1896.