The Kansas City Chiefs have a birthday today. The fans might not realize it, but this was the day the Chiefs Kingdom was born. Founder Lamar Hunt, owner of the Dallas Texans, made the decision 63 years ago to move his AFL franchise to Kansas City, establishing it as the league’s signature franchise.
I was fortunate to meet Lamar Hunt multiple times. As a young Chiefs fan, I first met him at a picnic the summer before the Chiefs won Super Bowl IV. He and my father worked together. When the Chiefs returned to Kansas City after defeating the Minnesota Vikings in that signature win, we met again.
This time, I was sitting on my Dad’s shoulders when Lamar Hunt came up to us and asked me, ‘Nicky, what did you think of that game?’ To say I was shocked was an understatement. That he remembered my name from our brief meeting months earlier, in the chaos of the packed airport, was something I never forgot.
Today, so many people have stories about Lamar Hunt, but on this day, he and the other Fools Club Members decided to unite in the rival NFL league – the American Football League.
The AFL was unique, and on this day 63 years ago, Lamar Hunt, the owner of the Dallas Texans, announced he’d be moving his franchise to Kansas City. It was a bold move that would reshape the landscape of football, and our city became the epicenter of the AFL.
Though it would be years before the AFL defeated the NFL in the Super Bowl, first with the Jets in 1968 and the Chiefs in 1969, before the merger, the decision to move to Kansas City began a love affair with a fan base that started as the Wolfpack and evolved into the Chiefs Kingdom.
I’ve never forgotten my roots as a Chiefs fan, and as a survivor of the fifty-year gap between Super Bowl wins, I know the current version would not have been possible had Lamar Hunt chosen another city to move his football team.
My father passed away right before the Chiefs won Super Bowl LIV, and to say it was an emotional experience would not do justice to the impact that day had on our relationship. Thankfully, his son, Clark Hunt, carried on his Dad’s vision, turning them into the Championship franchise they are today.
When I became a reporter, I spoke with Lamar Hunt multiple times because he was always around the facility. During the 2004 NFL Draft, we were in the press box, awaiting the results.
Looking down on the field, I saw a man walking around the inner bowl. That man was Lamar Hunt. About an hour later, he emerged into the press room, and I asked him what he was doing on the field.
He said he was writing down the names of all the sponsors of the Kansas City Wizards MLS team, which played in Arrowhead at the time, and wanted to send them a handwritten note thanking them for their patronage of his team. Those who knew Lamar often said he sent handwritten letters to people, including my late father.
As the Chiefs get ready for the 2026 season, it’s hard to believe it’s been 63 years since this franchise was founded, and I was a year old, living in Packer country, when the move was made. Little did I know the impact that decision would have on my life.
But after moving to Kansas City in 1965 and landing in the same neighborhood as Hank Stram and Bobby Bell, my soul was forever a Chiefs fan.
Yet had Lamar Hunt not chosen Kansas City, those friendships, including one with my childhood hero, Len Dawson, that lasted over 50 years, would not have been possible without the bold move that changed all of us who love the Kansas City Chiefs then and now.
