The Baltimore Colts relocation to Indianapolis was a successful effort by the then-owner of the Baltimore Colts (Robert Irsay) to relocate the American football team from Baltimore, Maryland, to Indianapolis, Indiana, after the 1983 National Football League (NFL) season. The team began play as the Indianapolis Colts in the 1984 NFL season.
Irsay moved the team in the dead of night on March 2829, 1984, after the city of Baltimore proved unwilling to replace Memorial Stadium and the Maryland General Assembly was on the verge of passing legislation allowing the city to seize the team via eminent domain. The move embittered many Baltimoreans for decades, and has had a lasting impact on the NFL, including another controversial relocation 12 years later that brought Baltimore its current NFL team, the Ravens.
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 season, the Colts have played their games in Lucas Oil Stadium. Previously, the team had played for over two decades (1984–2007) at the RCA Dome. Since 1987, the Colts have served as the host team for the NFL Scouting Combine.
The Colts have competed as a member club of the NFL since their founding in Baltimore in 1953 after then-owner Carroll Rosenbloom purchased the assets of the NFL's last founding Ohio League member Dayton Triangles-Dallas Texans franchise. They were one of three NFL teams to join those of the American Football League (AFL) to form the AFC following the 1970 merger. While in Baltimore, the team advanced to the playoffs 10 times and won three NFL Championship games in 1958, 1959, and 1968. The Colts played in two Super Bowl games while they were based in Baltimore, losing to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III and defeating the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl V. The Colts relocated to Indianapolis in 1984 and have since appeared in the playoffs 16 times, won two conference championships, and won one Super Bowl, in which they defeated the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI.
1984Mar, 29
The Baltimore Colts load its possessions onto fifteen Mayflower moving trucks in the early morning hours and transfer its operations to Indianapolis.
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Events on 1984
- 7Jan
Association of Southeast Asian Nations
Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). - 5Jun
Indira Gandhi
The Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, orders an attack on the Golden Temple, the holiest site of the Sikh religion. - 4Aug
Burkina Faso
The Republic of Upper Volta changes its name to Burkina Faso. - 20Sep
Beirut
A suicide bomber in a car attacks the U.S. embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, killing twenty-two people. - 26Sep
Transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong
The United Kingdom and China agree to a transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong, to take place in 1997.