Hall of Fame: Full History of inductees

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CANTON — As the Pro Football Hall of Fame celebrates the Class of 2026 this week, let’s play an appropriate trivia game.

So, how many Gold Jacket names can you remember from the original Class in 1963? Here is a hint: There were 17 inductees, including 11 players, two coaches and four contributors.

OK, maybe that is a lot to recall even for the most astute pro football fans.

How about this one?: Which player waited the longest to be inducted?

Hold that thought. We will reveal the answer later.

After this week’s ceremonies there will be 386 Hall of Fame inductees, including 329 players, 28 coaches and 29 contributors.

For your records, Hall of Football — which is not affiliated with the Pro Football Hall of Fame — is providing an unofficial list of all inductees, from 1963 until this week. This is a free, downloadable Excel workbook for you to keep for reference.

We record how long each player waited, counting from his final year of participation. This time includes the mandatory waiting period, which varied from one to five years. We note those inducted as first-year eligibles — there are 91 — as well as those voted in during the first two or three years.

To maintain consistency across all eras in terms of Modern and Senior players, inductees were classified using a uniform standard aligned with current Hall of Fame rules. Any player inducted more than 25 years after his final season is categorized as a Senior, regardless of how the Hall classified the player at the time of induction.

This allows for a consistent comparison of Modern Era and Senior selections across the full history of the Hall, including the early classes (1963–1966), when formal eligibility timelines and categories were not yet established.

Two periods require context. The early classes (1963–1966) predate modern eligibility standards. The Centennial Class results from 2020 are separated from standard decade induction totals so as not to skew decade-based comparisons.

Here is a sample of our chart showing inductees from 2020 to now

Here is an example of a condensed version of all inductees, basically by decades. Below that, we offer this as a downloadable excel workbook as well as a workbook that lists all inductees from the 1963 inaugural class through this year’s five new Gold Jackets.

Condensed version

Here is condensed version in downloadable form

🏈 List analyzing every inductee in HOFame history.

For assistance accessing any materials, contact fcooney@sportsxchange.com.

Below is downloadable full list analyzing every inductee in HOFame history, shown year by year categorized as Senior or Modern Era player, coach or contributor with length of wait between retirement and induction

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Now the answer to the trivia question — Which player waited the longest to be inducted?

He was tackle Duke Slater, who played from 1922 until 1931 and was inducted in 2020, 89 years after he last played.

Now pore through the list and create your own questions and answers.