Sports programs are among the most popular shows on television. Games are watched in virtually every home in America. And it all began in New York City.
On May 17, 1939, the first baseball game was televised. It was a college game between Columbia and Princeton, played at Baker Field in New York. The first football game on TV was played at Randall’s Island, New York, on September 30, 1939. The participating teams were Fordham and Waynesburg College. On February 25, 1940, the first hockey game was shown. Madison Square Garden was the site; the teams were the New York Rangers and the Montreal Canadiens. Madison Square Garden hosted the first basketball game on TV three days later. It was between Fordham and Pittsburgh.
From The Giant Book of More Strange But True Sports Stories by Howard Liss. Illustrations by Joe Mathieu.
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