Their first three seasons were very slow. But it all changed when Al Davis joined the team as head coach and general manager in 1963. At the age of 33, he was the youngest man in football history to be hired in those positions. He was the force that took the Raiders to the heights they reached. He was also named AFL’s Coach of the Year in 1963.

The Raiders Victories

Under the guidance of head coach Al Davis who later became their owner, the Oakland Raiders have won many championships. As part of the AFL, they won the AFL West Division Championship for three consecutive years from 1967 to 1969. Thereafter, they won four AFC Conference Championships. They have also won the AFC West Division Championships twelve times. The Raiders have three Super Bowl titles to their credit, in 1976, 1980 and 1983.

In the 1970’s the Oakland Raiders were considered one of the most successful franchises of the NFL under Head Coach John Madden who had joined in 1969. Under him, the team won six division titles. They won their first Super Bowl under him as well, beating the Minnesota Vikings, 32-14, in 1976.

Davis tried to relocate his team to Los Angeles in 1980, but failed. He eventually managed to move them in 1982. The Raiders therefore played their home games at the Los Angeles Coliseum for 12 years. Davis took them back to Oakland in 1995 where they play their home games at the McAfee Coliseum till date. Once back in Oakland, their fortunes did not improve much. They hired and fired many head coaches, including Art Shell, who was the first African American Head coach in modern NFL. The list also included Mike White, Joe Bugel, Jon Gruden and Bill Callahan. Shell was reinstated as Head Coach in 2006 but fired again soon after in January 2007. The current head coach is 31 year old Lane Kiffin, the youngest coach in franchise history as well as the NFL.

Al Davis is still the owner of the team and upon his death; the reigns will be taken over by his wife, Carol.

It’s interesting to note that the Raiders do not have the practice of retiring jersey numbers. Only the number 00 is no longer made as it was originally made for Jim Otto as a marketing gimmick.