Long before the Steelers reigned supreme in Pittsburgh they were known as the Pirates, just like the baseball team. The NFL was in its infancy and it wasn’t until 1933 when Pennsylvania relaxed its blue laws allowing sporting events to take place on Sundays. Art Rooney saw an opportunity, dove in head first and paid the NFL $2,500 to join the league. Composed of mainly semi-pro players, the all new NFL team took the field for the first time on September 20, 1933 and played the Giants from New York at Forbes Field.

First ever Pittsburgh Pirates Football team photo was printed in 1933 and is believed to only have been available to team members and VIP’s. High quality image features the entire team in their clean uniforms along with the coaching staff and President Rooney. This Official Team Photo was most likely the first ever photo taken of the team and it’s assumed it was taken towards the end of camp due to the green trees in the background full of leaves. 14.5x19” overall, this photo presents well with only a few chips on the edges and two small gouges that have been previously touched up. The back has some dirt noticed but does not affect the image in any way.