About New England Patriots
National Football League
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. The Patriots compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference East division. The Patriots play home games at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, which is 22 miles southwest of Boston. The franchise is owned by Robert Kraft, who purchased the team in 1994. As of 2023, the Patriots are tied for the third-most valuable sports team in the world and have sold out every home game since 1994.
Founded in 1959 as the Boston Patriots, the team was a charter member of the American Football League before joining the NFL in 1970 through the AFL–NFL merger. The Patriots played their home games at various stadiums throughout Boston, including Fenway Park from 1963 to 1969 until the franchise moved to Foxborough in 1971. As part of the move, the team changed its name to the New England Patriots. Home games were played at Foxboro Stadium until 2002 when the stadium was demolished alongside the opening of Gillette Stadium. The team began utilizing Gillette Stadium for home games the same year.
The Patriots hold the records for most Super Bowl wins , appearances , and losses . Generally unsuccessful prior to the 21st century, the franchise enjoyed a period of dominance under head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady from 2001 to 2019. The Brady–Belichick era, regarded as one of the greatest sports dynasties, would see the Patriots claim nearly every major Super Bowl record. Other NFL records held by the franchise include the most wins in a 10-year period , the longest winning streak of regular season and playoff games , the most consecutive winning seasons , the most consecutive conference championship appearances , the most consecutive division titles , the only undefeated 16-game regular season , and the highest postseason winning percentage .
On November 16, 1959, Boston business executive Billy Sullivan was awarded the eighth and final franchise of the developing American Football League . The following winter, locals were allowed to submit ideas for the Boston football team's official name. The most popular choice – and the one that Sullivan selected – was the "Boston Patriots", with "Patriots" referring to the colonists of the Thirteen Colonies who rebelled against British control during the American Revolution and in July 1776 declared the United States of America an independent nation, which heavily involved the then-colony of Massachusetts. Immediately thereafter, artist Phil Bissell of The Boston Globe developed the "Pat Patriot" logo.
The Patriots never had a regular home stadium in the AFL. Boston University Field, Harvard Stadium, Fenway Park , and Boston College's Alumni Stadium all served as home fields during their time in the American Football League. The 1963 season saw the franchise's first playoff win over Buffalo to clinch the division. They subsequently lost the AFL championship game to the San Diego Chargers 51–10. They did not appear again in an AFL or NFL post-season game for another 13 years.
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