nfl team moves in the middle of the night
The Baltimore Colts relocation to Indianapolis was a successful effort by the then-owner of the Baltimore Colts (Robert Irsay) to move the American football team from Baltimore, Maryland to Indianapolis, Indiana. The team began play as the Indianapolis Colts for the 1984 National Football League (NFL) season. The Colts' move was completely unannounced and occurred in the early hours of March 29, 1984, after years of lobbying for a new stadium to replace the inadequate Memorial Stadium. The franchise's move continues to embitter many Baltimore natives decades afterward, and would have a lasting impact on the NFL, including another controversial relocation twelve years later that resulted in Baltimore receiving its current NFL team, the Ravens.