The Barbed Wire Bowl
Original title: “In 1946, German POWs awaiting repatriation played football against each other in Stockton, California. Organized by American military officials, the game became known as the Barbed Wire Bowl.” Subreddit: /r/NFL Post date: June 9, 2018 This isn’t related to the NFL in particular, but I thought it was an interesting-enough story to share during this offseason. Football. It’s about as American as apple pie, bald eagles, and killing Nazis, right? Well, what about Nazis playing football? After World War II, American troops overseeing German prisoners of war proposed an interesting way for their prisoners to pass the time until they were sent home: a game of football. This was the Barbed Wire Bowl. With World War II coming to a close, American military officials pondered what to do with German prisoners of war staying in camps located in the United States. At the Stockton Ordnance Depot in California, Colonel Kenneth M. Barager had an interesting idea: before repatriating th...