Blackballed

In 1933, NFL owners secretly banned Black players from the league. Thirteen years later, four Black players—Kenny Washington, Woody Strode, Bill Willis, and Marion Motley—reintegrated pro football.

The Forgotten Four broke the race barrier in professional football one year before Jackie Robinson’s historic, and widely recognized, debut in the Major Leagues. This is their story.

It’s a story that’s been largely buried. But it’s a story that matters today, to help understand the league’s complicated relationship with race.

The four-part narrative podcast is hosted by Chelsea Stark-Jones, who worked for the NFL for a decade before coming to The Ringer. It’s co-reported by Lex Pryor, whose voice also appears throughout the series.