HISTORY OF THE DUKE FOOTBALL

In 1925, Tim Mara bought the NY Giants for $500.  Tim Mara had a fixation with Arthur Wellesley, born in Dublin in 1769.  Arthur was a courageous warrior, a characteristic common with football players.  Arthur was the Duke of Wellington.  Mara named his second son Wellington who grew up on the sidelines of football earning respect and the lasting nickname "The Duke".

After the 1939 season, the team owners asked Spalding (the ball J5V, used by most college football) for an official ball.  Spalding refused.  The Leagues most influential owners, George Halas and Tim Mara turned to Wilson.  Arch Turner (Wilson R&D) designed a pattern for the ball slightly different than the collegiate ball to be used exclusively by the NFL named "The Duke".  The new ball was launched in the spring of 1941.

The actual adoption was awarded to Thorp Sporting Goods of New York.  Wilson was merely the exclusive manufacturer of "The Duke".  Thorp Sporting Goods was owned by Edward Thorp (ex Spalding VP) who was also helpful to the NFL in getting game officials.  Ed Thorp was married to Tim Mara's sister-in-law, who took over the dealership when Thorp died.  The Mara family provided the financial backing for Thorp's company.

It was agreed that "The Duke" ball would be distributed to the five Eastern Division teams by Thorp Sporting Goods and to the Western Division by May and Halas Sporting Goods of Chicago, in which George Halas was a partner.  The Duke" football was used for play in the NFL until the merger with the AFL into to the NFL in the early seventies.  That is when the "NFL" ball was born.