Charlotte Hornets (WFL)

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The Charlotte Hornets were a football team in the short-lived World Football League. They were actually relocated to Charlotte, North Carolina from New York City in the middle of their inaugural 1974 season.

The Charlotte Hornets pro football franchise came into being October 7, 1974. Less than a year earlier, it had originated as the Boston Bulldogs, then shortened at the 11th hour in October 1973 to Bulls. On March 5, 1974, a merger between the Boston Bulls and the unnamed, original New York franchise (which became the Portland Storm) was consummated. The team, one of twelve in the new league, finally took the field as the "New York Stars" at the beginning of the 1974 season.

Finding a home field for the fledgling team proved just as difficult as finding a name. Yankee Stadium was closed for renovation right after the Yankees finished the 1973 season in October; it would not reopen until 1976. Shea Stadium became full to capacity as the "Bronx Bombers" shared the park with the hometown Mets and the NFL's Jets. The Stars had to settle for decrepit Downing Stadium, located at Randalls Island near the East River. The Stars organization already had Vito "Babe" Parilli as its head coach, when the team had been located in Boston. Parilli signed a number of former Super Bowl III Jets including wide receiver George Sauer, who was coming out of retirement after three years, and former All-Pro defensive men Gerry Philbin, as well as John Elliott.

The WFL needed New York in order to have a presence in the largest U.S. media market. The Stars sold between 5,500 and 8,000 season tickets. Its first home game, after losing a close one at Jacksonville-in front of a league high crowd of 59,112 at the Gator Bowl, against the Birmingham Americans attracted 17,943 New Yorkers. After leading at halftime, 29-3, the Stars were toppled by the efforts of Americans quarterback George Mira, who threw for three touchdowns and ran for another as Birmingham pulled out a 32-29 comeback win. The Stars finally won their first game, as kicker Moses Lajterman put the winning field goal through for a razor-thin 17-15 win over Philadelphia. The Stars and hosting Bell performed in front of the largest WFL attended game, with 64,179 on hand. Many of the tickets were sold at large discounts or were given away free in a marketing ploy to make the League appear more successful than it was.

New York then went on a tear, winning five in a row. Among the victims besides the Bell were the Jacksonville Sharks, Southern California Sun, Portland Storm, and Houston Texans. Coincidentally, the team's winning streak was stopped by those same Texans a week later, with a surprise addition to the Houston roster: John Matuszak. Matuszak had been AWOL from the NFL's Houston Oilers just 48 hours earlier. The Stars had mixed results in the next few weeks, winning over Portland again, but losing to Florida in the rain and The Hawaiians in the sun.

Although the Stars performed well - going 8-5 after beating Detroit 37-7, on a rare Tuesday night game (moved because of Yom Kippur), September 24, 1974 was their final game at New York. Ironically, that same day, the Detroit Wheels' 33 owners filed for bankruptcy. Without an adequate stadium, the Stars suffered financially and the league announced a move to Charlotte, North Carolina for the balance of the 1974 season in late September. The team played one game at Soldier Field, where they beat the Chicago Fire, 41-30 as the Charlotte Stars.

The team's first home game at Charlotte was a rousing success. In the league's brief history, the Hornets sold out all 25,133 tickets, leaving some 5,000 out of luck. Unfortunately, the visiting Memphis Southmen ruined their debut, winning 27-23. In spite of the loss, the new Charlotte club - which played at American Legion Memorial Stadium-did far better in tickets sales than as the old New York Stars. In four games at Charlotte, the Hornets sold over 80,000 compared to just 75,000 in seven games at Downing Stadium. Toward the end of the season, the Hornets struggled on the field, losing their last four games. Although Charlotte finished second place with a 10-10 record, they couldn't afford to attend the playoff game at Orlando, against the first place Eastern Division winning Florida Blazers. The Philadelphia Bell, who finished third with a 9-11 record, took the Hornets' place.

The team returned for the abbreviated 1975 campaign as the Charlotte Hornets and lasted until the league ceased operations in midseason. The Hornets finished at 6-5.