The Los Angeles Rams are an American professional gridiron football team that competes in the National Football League's National Football Conference (NFC). The Rams, based in the Los Angeles region, have won two NFL titles (1945 and 1951) and one Super Bowl (2000).
They are the second oldest franchise in the NFL behind the Chicago Bears. The Rams originally began as the Cleveland Rams in 1946. Two years later, they moved to Los Angeles where they have remained ever since.
They play their home games at the Los Angeles Rams Stadium in Inglewood, California. The stadium is known as "The Coliseum" because it is located on a site that was once part of the campus of USC. It is the largest domed stadium in the world.
The first game was held on September 17, 1946, with the Rams defeating the Chicago Cardinals 7-3 at Cleveland Stadium. The last game was played on January 3, 2019 when they lost to the New England Patriots 42-40 at Gillette Stadium. The record stands at 944-937-45.
After World War II, several new teams entered the league and were given the names "Rams". The original Los Angeles Rams are not related to the current Rams team from St. Louis, Missouri or the Jaguars from Jacksonville, Florida.
The Rams are a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division in the National Football League (NFL). The Los Angeles Rams franchise has won three NFL titles and is the first team to do so while representing three distinct cities (Cleveland in 1945, Los Angeles in 1951, and St. Louis in 1955).
The team was founded as an expansion club in 1946 by William Andrews Clark Jr., who also served as its first president. The Rams played their home games at War Memorial Stadium in St. Louis until 2016, when they moved into their new stadium, SoFi Stadium.
In the team's first season, it lost all its games but one, which was a 14-7 victory over the Chicago Bears. The Rams finished with a 2-10 record but made the playoffs due to a tiebreaker system at that time. They went on to lose their only playoff game that year 21-9 at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Over the next eight seasons, the Rams posted a winning record every year except for 1952 when they had a 4-6-1 mark. In 1956, they captured their first NFL championship after defeating the defending champion Browns 17-0 in the Championship Game. The following year, they fell to the Brown in another Championship Game by a score of 7-3.
In 1960, the Rams moved back to Los Angeles where they have remained ever since.
The Los Angeles Rams are members of the National Football Conference's (NFC) West division in the National Football League (NFL). The Rams have three NFL titles and are the only club to have won them all in separate locales. They are also the only team to have played in every season since the NFL-AFL merger in 1970.
The Rams began play in 1946 as an expansion team under the name Boston Bulldogs. They were originally owned by Dan Topping who had also purchased the Washington Redskins the previous year. After one season, Topping was forced to sell his team due to financial difficulties. William Andrews, Jr., then owner of the Chicago Bears, bought the franchise for $250,000. The Rams competed as an independent team for their first two seasons before joining the newly formed American Football League (AFL) in 1949. The AFL became part of the NFL in 1950 after which point the Rams moved back to Los Angeles where they remain today. They have been continuously based in California ever since.
The Rams have qualified for the playoffs nine times including seven straight from 1973 to 1979 when they made the postseason eight times. From 2000 to 2010, they went unapplied for four consecutive years before making the playoffs in 2014 as host teams are given priority over new franchises. The Rams' overall record is 76 wins, 85 losses and 1 tie.
Four appearances in the Super Bowl The Rams have won 15 division championships in their 71-year history. They've made the playoffs 27 times, winning four NFC Championships. They have participated in four Super Bowls, winning one of them. The last time the Rams were in the Super Bowl was in 2019.
The Rams first season was 1949 and they have not missed the postseason since then.
They have a regular season record of 151-99-1 and a playoff record of 10-8. Their overall record is 171-99-1.
Los Angeles has been to four Super Bowls and all four games have been played in Los Angeles. The first two games were played at the Coliseum and then later in 2002 the stadium was converted into a private club called Sports Arena. The next two games were played at University of Phoenix Stadium. Both these stadiums are used by the NFL's Arizona Cardinals.
The Rams have never appeared in more than two consecutive Super Bowls. They went from 1950 to 1952 and then didn't return until 2014. They finished first in the Pacific Division each year from 1949-1952 except for 1951 when they fell to second place behind Chicago.
In 2014 the Rams returned to the game after being absent for 20 years.
Following the 1994 NFL season, the Rams relocated from Southern California to St. Louis, Missouri. The move was intended to improve the teams' chances of success in the competitive NFC North division.
Before the relocation, most sports writers considered the Rams to be a California team because they were based in Los Angeles and played their home games at Anaheim Stadium. However, since the move, many have come to regard them as a Midwest team due to their being based in St. Louis and playing their home games at Edward Jones Dome.
Furthermore, several former Rams have referred to themselves as "Midwesterners" because they prefer the Midwestern United States to other parts of the country. These include offensive linemen Orlando Pace and Adam Archuleta, defensive backs James Butler and Mike Jones, and wide receivers Mark Clayton and Isaac Bruce. Quarterback Marc Bulger has said that he prefers the Midwest because it is where he grew up and his family still lives there. He went on to say that although he loves the Pacific Ocean and the desert life in Los Angeles, it is the midwest that inspires him to play football better than anyone else.
California has been the home state of every other NFL team except for the Rams and the Oakland Raiders.
They are now in the Western Division of the National Football Conference (NFC) of the National Football League, having previously been known as the Cleveland Rams and then as the St. Louis Rams (NFL). The team was founded in 1946 as an expansion team by William H. Adams, who also owned the Chicago Eagles, the first NFL franchise. Before the start of the 1947 season, Adams sold his shares in the team to a group led by Al Davis that included actor James Dean.
The team played their home games at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum until 2016, when they moved back to their original city of St. Louis for the 2017 season. The 2017 season is their last as a Rams due to relocation issues; their new stadium will not be ready in time for the 2018 season.
After three seasons, the Rams went bankrupt in 1999 and were relocated along with two other teams (the Oakland Raiders and San Diego Chargers) by their owner, Georgia Frontiere, who wanted a larger market. The move came after several failed attempts by the league to have a team relocate to Charlotte, North Carolina, and Miami, Florida.
In January 2016, shortly before the start of the regular season, it was announced that the Rams would be returning to Los Angeles for the 2016 season.
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