NFL

The Cleveland Browns are a professional NFL team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The Browns compete in the NFL as a member of the Northern Division of the American Conference. The Browns play their games at FirstEnergy Stadium, which opened in 1999, with administrative offices and training facilities in Berea, Ohio. They are the only one of the NFL's 32 member franchises not to have a logo on their helmets.

The franchise was founded by businessman Arthur B. McBride and coach Paul Brown and was originally part of the All-American Football Conference (AAFC). The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a professional American soccer league that challenged the already established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. The Browns dominated the AAFC, achieving a 47-3-3 record in the four league seasons and winning their championship in each. When the AAFC dissolved after the 1949 season, the Browns joined the NFL along with the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Colts (now the Indianapolis Colts). The Browns won the championship in their inaugural season in the NFL, as well as in the 1954, 1955 and 1964 seasons.

In 1995, owner Art Modell, who had purchased the Browns in 1961, announced plans to move the team to Baltimore. After threats of legal action by the city of Cleveland and its fans, an agreement was reached in early 1996 that allowed Modell to establish the Baltimore Ravens as a new franchise, while retaining the contracts of all Browns personnel. The intellectual property of the Browns, including the team name, logos, training facilities and history, was held in trust and the franchise was deemed by the NFL to be suspended, with a new team to be established in 1999, either for expansion or relocation, for which they were suspended from 1996 to 1999. The Browns were announced as an expansion team in 1998 and resumed in 1999. From 2012 to date Jimmy Haslam owns the Cleveland Browns, which during this time holds a record of 38-97-1.

Since resuming operations in 1999, the Browns have had trouble finding success in the AFC. They have had only two winning seasons (in 2002 and 2007), one playoff appearance (2002) and no playoff wins. The franchise has also been noted for its lack of stability with the quarterbacks, having used 30 players in the position since 1999. Until the end of the 2017 season, the Browns' record of wins and losses since returning to the NFL in 1999 is 88-216.

In 2017, the Browns became the second team in league history to finish the 0-16 season, joining the 2008 Detroit Lions. To date, the Browns have the longest drought of NFL playoff appearances, with 17 seasons. The Browns have never participated in a Super Bowl game.

American Football Conference | AFC

National Football Conference | NFC