All good stories have interesting beginnings and memorable conclusions. I’m happy to report that the story of the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association (SGMA) began under very interesting circumstances and, thankfully, is nowhere near its final chapter! For those of you who don’t know, the saga of SGMA began in the late winter of 1906 – March 20th, to be exact.

Why was SGMA founded in the first place? That’s a great question. If you read on, you’ll find the answer.
During the 1905 football season in the U.S., there were a number of major injuries and nearly 20 deaths – and there weren’t that many teams at the time. For the most part, the game was played almost exclusively by college and university students.

During one particular game between two schools in the East, each of the players from one team focused their attention on “getting” the ‘top’ player from the other team. While this ‘top’ player remained in the game from beginning to end, he was subjected to a fierce beating throughout the contest. A photographer who was covering this specific game took a picture of this battered, bloodied, and beaten ‘top’ player. The picture appeared in many newspapers across the country.
President Theodore Roosevelt saw the picture and was quite upset about what he had seen. His sentiment was shared by many college presidents. Soon thereafter, he sent a message to collegiate coaches and athletic directors: “Clean up the game or I’ll outlaw it.” That message (“Reform or Abolish”) was also heard by sporting goods manufacturers who quickly formed a ‘troubleshooting group,’ now known as SGMA, to begin working with the powers-to-be in college football on changing the rules and modifying uniform and equipment standards.
As they say, the rest is history.

Can you imagine life in this country without high school football on Fridays, college football on Saturdays, and professional football on Sundays? Thanks to the joint efforts of those in charge of the sporting goods industry and college athletics, the gridiron game has never been more popular.

What else happened in 1906? Sports were alive and well: Princeton University ruled eastern football with a record of 9-0-1; Tommy Burns was the heavyweight champion of the world; Amos Alonzo Stagg was the head football coach at the University of Chicago; Alex Smith won the U.S. Open golf championship; and the White Sox upset the Cubs in the World Series.