History of the Atlanta Falcons

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The American football team Atlanta Falcons was founded in Atlanta, Georgia in 1965 and joined the NFL Eastern Conference, with Norb Hecker as coach. They soon moved to the NFC West division, and in 2002 to NFC South. Their home stadiums have been the Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium (1966–1991), the Georgia Dome (1992–2016), and Mercedes-Benz Stadium (since 2017).

The Falcons had little success at first and did not qualify for the postseason playoffs until 1978. They were NFC West champions in 1980 and 1998, and in 1998 played in the Super Bowl XXXIII match, losing to Denver Broncos.

The decade of the 2000s featured star player Michael Vick and was marred by criminal charges against him. Falcons finished top of NFC South in 2004, 2010 and 2012, and reached Super Bowl LI in 2016, where they lost to the New England Patriots.