NFL TRAINING CAMPS OPEN THIS WEEK; COLTS FIRST TO REPORT ON JULY 5; FOUR TEAMS AT NEW SITES

For the second year in a row, the Indianapolis Colts will be the first team to open training camp in the NFL when their rookies report to Colts headquarters in Indianapolis on July 5.

The Colts will be followed to training camp next week by the Miami Dolphins on July 8, the Green Bay Packers on July 9 and the Washington Redskins on July 12. By July 20, all 30 NFL clubs will be encamped -- four at new sites.

The new NFL training camp locations for 1997:

An economic boost for the schools and areas hosting these new NFL camps is expected, as well as an excitement boost for the team's local fans. At Georgetown College in Georgetown, Kentucky, site of the Cincinnati Bengals' new preseason home, a new athletic complex, including a 5,000-seat stadium, will be constructed thanks to the Bengals' presence.

"The tremendous economic impact of the Bengals' one-month training camp to the community, along with the revenue the college will realize, were a strong catalyst for the athletic complex project," says Georgetown President WILLIAM CROUCH, JR.

Throughout the U.S., NFL training camps have provided economic surges.

The Wisconsin "Cheese League," which hosts four NFL clubs -- the Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs and New Orleans Saints -- pumps close to $6 million into the state.

In Westminster, Maryland, officials have estimated that more than $3 million was added to the local economy by the Baltimore Ravens' first training camp at Western Maryland College last year. The Ravens signed a five-year contract this year to remain at the school.

The Dallas Cowboys consider their Austin, Texas training camp site a good-luck charm -- and vice versa. The team has posted an 89-38 record and won three Super Bowls since moving to Austin eight years ago. It is estimated by local officials that at least $3 million is brought into the city each year by fans watching the Cowboys train.

NFL training camps still retain their "small town" atmosphere. The village of Fredonia, New York -- summer home of the Buffalo Bills -- will hold a "Welcome Back Bills" children's parade on July 12. And a local Coca-Cola bottler will issue special cans with a Philadelphia Eagles' training camp logo to salute the team's presence in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Last year, the Eagles' first at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, an average of 5,000 fans attended practice each day.

Meanwhile, on the field, players are ready.

"Six months without contact is like going two or three days without food for me," says defensive tackle WILLIAM GAINES of the Washington Redskins.

So contact there will be, in sessions beginning with the Colts this Saturday, leading to "Kickoff '97" on August 31-September 1. Fans will be able to see that contact on 16 nationally televised preseason games -- games that in the era of free agency are more important than ever.

The first is the annual kickoff to preseason, the AFC-NFC Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on

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NFL TRAINING CAMP LOOKBACK

A Baltimore Ravens player at training camp in Westminster, Maryland will have to go a long way to beat this record -- 25 hot dogs with double chili sauce and onions in one sitting at Harry's Main Street Restaurant. That was the consumption one day of defensive tackle ART DONOVAN when the Baltimore Colts trained in Westminster -- a record that still stands. "Besides," says owner HARRY SIRINAKIS, thinking of the '90's NFL player, "they probably have strict diets."

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Saturday, July 26 in Canton, Ohio. This year, the Minnesota Vikings will face the Seattle Seahawks at 2:30 PM ET on ABC-TV. At halftime, ABC will show highlights of the Hall of Fame induction ceremony of the Class of '97: MIKE HAYNES, WELLINGTON MARA, DON SHULA and MIKE WEBSTER.

The next day, Sunday, July 27, NFL football is introduced to Ireland in the first of three American Bowls. The Bears will take on the Pittsburgh Steelers on FOX-TV at 1:00 PM ET in Dublin's 40,000-seat Croke Park, home of the Gaelic Athletic Association.

Mexico City will host the second American Bowl of the preseason on Monday night, August 4 (ABC-TV, 8:00 PM ET) when the Denver Broncos meet the Dolphins at newly named Estadio Guillermo Canedo, formerly known as Azteca Stadium. In 1994, an all-time NFL single-game attendance record was set at the site when 112,376 fans saw the Houston Oilers play the Cowboys in an American Bowl.

The final American Bowl -- the 30th in the series that began in 1986 and has attracted 1.5 million fans in eight international cities for an average of 56,000 fans -- will be held in Toronto's SkyDome on August 16. The Super Bowl XXXI champion Packers will play the Bills on NBC-TV at 4:00 PM ET.

1997 NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE TRAINING CAMP SITES AND DATES

AMERICAN FOOTBALL CONFERENCE

NATIONAL FOOTBALL CONFERENCE

1997 NFL PRESEASON NATIONAL TELEVISION SCHEDULE

(All times local, except American Bowl games, which are ET)

1997 NFL TRAINING CAMPS (Following is a list of NFL training camps, opening dates, sites and telephone numbers:

IMPORTANT DATES OF 1997 NFL SEASON