Coordinates: 40°49′14″N 81°23′51″W / 40.82056°N 81.3975°W / 40.82056; -81.3975

The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame of professional football in the United States with an emphasis on the National Football League (NFL). The hall opened in Canton, Ohio, on September 7, 1963, with 17 charter enshrinees. Including the most recent six honorees announced in February 2012, there are a total 267 members of the Hall of Fame. The Pro Football Hall of Fame is unique among North American major league sports halls of fame in that officials are not inducted. The Baseball Hall of Fame, Basketball Hall of Fame and Hockey Hall of Fame have each inducted game officials as members.

Canton, Ohio was selected as the location for the Hall of Fame for three reasons: First, the NFL was founded in Canton in 1920 (at that time it was known as the American Professional Football Association); second, the now-defunct Canton Bulldogs were a successful NFL team based in Canton during the first few years of the league; and finally, the community of Canton successfully lobbied the NFL to have the Hall built in their city. Groundbreaking for the building was held on August 11, 1962. The original building contained just two rooms, and 19,000 square feet (1,800 m²) of interior space.

A Football Hall of Fame may refer to:

A hall of fame, wall of fame, walk of fame, walk of stars or avenue of stars is a type of attraction established for any field of endeavor to honor individuals of noteworthy achievement in that field. The meaning of "Fame" has changed over the years, originally meaning "renown" as opposed to today's more common meaning of "celebrity".

In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or museums which enshrine the honorees with sculptures, plaques, and displays of memorabilia. Sometimes, the honorees' plaques may instead be posted on a wall (a '"wall of fame") or inscribed on a sidewalk (a "walk of fame" or an "avenue of fame"). In others, the hall of fame is more figurative, and just simply consists of a list of names of noteworthy individuals maintained by an organization or community.

The English-language term was first used for the Hall of Fame for Great Americans at Bronx Community College, in New York City, although its inspiration, the Ruhmeshalle in Munich, Germany, also means "Hall of Fame". The Walhalla Temple in Bavaria, Germany, is an even earlier hall of fame, conceived in 1807 and built between 1830 and 1842.

Cristopher D. Carter (born November 25, 1965) is a former American football player in the National Football League. He played wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles (1987–89), the Minnesota Vikings (1990–2001) and the Miami Dolphins (2002).

After starting for the Ohio State University Buckeyes, Carter was drafted by the Eagles in the 4th round of the 1987 NFL supplemental draft. While in Philadelphia, head coach Buddy Ryan helped to coin one of ESPN's Chris Berman's famous quotes about Carter: "All he does is catch touchdowns." He was let go by Ryan in 1989, however, due to off-the-field issues. Carter was signed by the Vikings and turned his life and career around, becoming a two-time First-team, one-time Second-team All-Pro and playing in 8 straight Pro Bowls. When he left the Vikings after 2001, he held most of the team career receiving records. He briefly played for the Dolphins in 2002 before retiring.

Since retiring from the NFL, Carter has worked as an analyst on HBO's Inside the NFL, ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown, and online at Yahoo Sports. He also works as an assistant coach at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, where his son played wide receiver. Carter resides in Boca Raton, Florida. He is the brother of former NBA player and coach Butch Carter.

Warren Carlos Sapp (born December 19, 1972) is a former American college and professional football player who was defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for thirteen seasons. He played college football for the University of Miami Hurricanes, was recognized as a consensus All-American and won multiple awards. He was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1995 NFL Draft as the 12th overall pick, and played professionally for the Buccaneers and the Oakland Raiders of the NFL. He spent nine seasons with the Buccaneers where he earned seven trips to the Pro Bowl and a Super Bowl ring in 2002. He moved to the Raiders in 2004.

His 96.5 career sacks (100 counting the playoffs) are the second-highest career total sacks for a defensive tackle and the 28th highest overall for a defensive lineman. His 77 sacks with the Buccaneers is second in the team's history.

During Sapp's career, he has been the source of some controversy because of his hard-hitting style of play and his occasional verbal outbursts, both on the field and off. Some of these resulted in NFL fines, and he was once ejected from a game for unsportsmanlike conduct.