Professional Football Researchers Association Forum

Not counting that very pre-Depression franchise mentioned in this thread's title, Whalers (NHL) obviously are the only major sports franchise ever in Hartford, CT as far as I know. COULD the city hold an NFL franchise today, you think, along with an MLB, NBA, and/or NHL? City limits itself no more populated than Green Bay but when you include the metro population (surrounding counties and significantly away from both NYC and Boston's metro areas, mind you), we're talking over a million. Certainly a better idea, to me, than London! Thoughts?

It took nearly 20 years for much of New England to accept the Patriots.
Most of Connecticut remains a Giants' stronghold and those that are not in that group have been influenced by the Pats' success in the past few years.
Then, of course, there is that other New York franchise - something that rhymes with Mets.
Both New York organizations would strongly oppose a Connecticut team as would New England.
A concentration of a million people is hardly enough to consider the Hartford area. You need a base of at least 8-10 million WITHOUT three franchises within competitive range.
Add to that the fact the area has never strongly supported major or minor league sports.
So, Hartford might sing the blues but you won't see NFL football there.
Nassau County and Suffolk County (the two Long Island counties) have a better chance and they would also draw from the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island.

I doubt Hartford could even be granted an NFL franchise (not to mention NBA or MLB), as they're too close to Boston and NYC and would probably cut into all three markets, the Boston market and the markets of the two NY teams. They had their chance at hockey, and the only reason they came into the NHL was that they were a team that was absorbed from the WHA, and once in the NHL, they had to compete with Boston and New York and they were too small. Hartford is not even one of the 100 largest cities in the US, and is not even the largest city in Connecticut, which is Bridgeport. Green Bay is a special case as they have been in the league since 1921 and despite a small market, they have always had a strong local fanbase and a unique ownership system where the team is basically owned by the public, and they've won more NFL championships than any other franchise.

If I'm correct, no other team is ever allowed to be publicly owned like the Packers.

Hartford wasn't even really a big enough market when they were an NFL franchise. Any franchise in that area would be in Springfield, Mass. But really is about as unlikely.. Might as well say Montreal should get a team...

No. A third team in NY or a second in Chicago would be "more viable" than Hartford..and that's not saying much, if anything.

No knock against Hartford, which has a good location about midway between Foxboro and East Rutherford, but the city would need an NFL-sized stadium with all the trimmings. There was actually an article in the Hartford Courant this week about a proposed $350 million project that would include a minor league baseball ballpark that seats only 6,000. I suppose that the Yale Bowl could be expanded even further if the Ivy League school wanted to bring back a pro team (they hosted the Giants for awhile in the mid-70s) but that's New Haven instead of Hartford.

Rupert Patrick wrote:Green Bay is a special case as they have been in the league since 1921 and despite a small market, they have always had a strong local fanbase and a unique ownership system where the team is basically owned by the public, and they've won more NFL championships than any other franchise.

Mr. Patrick, please check your sources again. Vince Lombardi won the first two NFL championships for the Packers back in the days when they played without helmets. Then Bret Favre won another one, and Aaron Rodgers won another. That makes four championships, and as anyone who watches ESPN can tell you, the Packers rank behind Pittsburgh (with six), Dallas (five) and San Francisco (five). I expect more knowledgeable comments on a site that claims to be interested in football "history." Thank you.

A Fan

Mr. Patrick, please check your sources again. Vince Lombardi won the first two NFL championships for the Packers back in the days when they played without helmets. Then Bret Favre won another one, and Aaron Rodgers won another. That makes four championships, and as anyone who watches ESPN can tell you, the Packers rank behind Pittsburgh (with six), Dallas (five) and San Francisco (five). I expect more knowledgeable comments on a site that claims to be interested in football "history." Thank you.

Bob Gill wrote:Vince Lombardi won the first two NFL championships for the Packers back in the days when they played without helmets. Then Bret Favre won another one, and Aaron Rodgers won another. That makes four championships, and as anyone who watches ESPN can tell you, the Packers rank behind Pittsburgh (with six), Dallas (five) and San Francisco (five). I expect more knowledgeable comments on a site that claims to be interested in football "history." Thank you.

A Fan

Excellent.

Hey, go easy on ESPN. Somebody has to hire all the people who aren't real good at the whole reading thing.