Baseball Milestones 1882American Association Begins 1891Merger between National and American Associations 1901American League begins 1903Merger 1913Federal League starts 1915Federal League owners bought out by Major League Baseball 1922Antitrust suit brought by Federal League owners Supreme Court rules: “Baseball is not a business” and exempt from Sherman Anti-trust 1976 Free agency begins Kahn, Lawrence M. “The Sports Business as a Labor Market Laboratory.” Journal of Economic Perspectives 14 (Summer 2000):
ABA Merge AL Fed
Other Sports Milestones American Basketball Association World Hockey Association United States Football League Kahn, Lawrence M. “The Sports Business as a Labor Market Laboratory.” Journal of Economic Perspectives 14 (Summer 2000):
In 1967, highest average salaries in the NFL ABA WHL Free Agency
Kahn, Lawrence M. “The Sports Business as a Labor Market Laboratory.” Journal of Economic Perspectives 14 (Summer 2000): USFL 120% WHL: 284% ABA 615% Free Agency NFL wage increases % per yr % per yr % per yr 4% per yr