NFL Wembley: Get to know the Dallas Cowboys as America's Team hit London
Tuesday 11 November 2014 17:25, UK
They’re one of the most iconic teams in American sport, in world sport in fact, and now ‘America’s Team’ are in London as the NFL really gets serious about spreading the game to the UK, so what’s behind the story of one of the NFL’s major forces?
While recent polls in America have suggested that the Cowboys aren’t the most popular any more, there’s no team that attracts more attention, steals more of the limelight and grabs more of the headlines than Dallas.
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The glitz and glamour of the NFL is perfectly summed up by the Cowboys, and in particular their outspoken and flamboyant owner Jerry Jones.
They’re also the most valuable team in the NFL, and the fifth most valuable sports team in the world according to the latest Forbes listings which values them at $3.2 billion.
Like them or not the Cowboys are box office, they’re big business, and they’re in the UK this Sunday to play at Wembley, so let’s look at the history of the Dallas Cowboys…
In the beginning
Owners Clint Murchison and Bedford Wynne were awarded an expansion franchise in 1960 when they joined as a ‘swing’ team, playing every other team in the league once. Stocked with players from other teams, they duly lost 11 of their 12 games with just one tie against New York to their name.
They won their first game at the start of their second season against Pittsburgh at the Cotton Bowl, but head coach Tom Landry soon got them into shape as they made their first Super Bowl in February 1971 where they lost to the Baltimore Colts at the Orange Bowl, but they returned a year later to win their first Super Bowl title against the Miami Dolphins.
Three more appearances in the big game followed in just four years, although they were only able to win one of those Super Bowls – a 27-10 win over Denver – but the spell of success had firmly put them on the map as an NFL powerhouse.
America’s Team
After such a period of success the Cowboys had become huge, and everywhere they played around the NFL there seemed to be as many fans in silver and blue as there were home fans – and this fact was picked up by the crew at NFL Films who were getting footage of every team for end of season highlights packages.
After winning the Super Bowl in February 1978, the following season the Cowboys went 12-4 and returned to the big game, only to lose out agonisingly to the Steelers. When writing the intro for the Cowboys highlight film, Bob Ryan, noticing such success, strength in depth of the team and their huge following, wrote..
“No matter where they play, their fans are there to greet them. Their faces are recognised by fans all across this country. The sum total of their stars are a galaxy. They are the Dallas Cowboys…America’s team.”
Tom Landry
Their first coach and man who built them up to become the team that they are – the famous fedora-wearing Tom Landry stood on the Dallas sidelines for 29 years, leading them to unparalleled success during his time, including five Super Bowl appearances in nine years and two wins.
A defensive strategist, he moulded the famous ‘Doomsday Defence’ in Dallas which their success was built on. He won five NFC titles, 13 divisional crowns and more impressively a record 20 consecutive winning seasons, while also winning a record 20 playoff games.
Landry’s fortunes declined and his third straight losing season in 1988 turned out to be his last as he was fired by new owner Jerry Jones after a 3-13 record. Landry’s parting gi
