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National Football League (NFL), major American professional football organization, founded in 1920 in Canton, Ohio, as the American Professional Football Association. Its first president was Jim Thorpe, an outstanding American athlete who was also a player in the league. The NFL’s present name was adopted in 1922.
History
The league began play in 1920 and comprised five teams from Ohio (Akron Pros, Canton Bulldogs, Cleveland Tigers, Columbus Panhandlers, and Dayton Triangles), four teams from Illinois (Chicago Tigers, Decatur Staleys, Racine Cardinals [the Cardinals were based in Chicago but took the name of a local street], and Rock Island Independents), two from Indiana (Hammond Pros and Muncie Flyers), two from New York (Buffalo All-Americans and Rochester Jeffersons), and the Detroit Heralds from Michigan. Of these original franchises, only two remain: the Cardinals left Chicago for St. Louis after the 1959 season and relocated to Arizona in 1988; the Decatur Staleys moved to Chicago in 1921 and a year later changed their name to the Bears.
Britannica QuizFootball the Way Americans Play It QuizThe NFL survived many years of instability and competition from rival organizations to became the strongest American professional football league. The most serious challenge to its leading role came from the American Football League (AFL) in the 1960s. The NFL and AFL completed a merger in 1970, creating a 26-team circuit under the name of the older NFL. Since then the league has expanded four times, adding six new franchises.
For a more complete history of football and the NFL, see American football.
The league’s 32 teams are aligned as follows:
National Football Conference (NFC)NFC East: Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Commanders
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
NFC West: Arizona Cardinals, Los Angeles Rams, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks
AFC East: Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, New York Jets
AFC North: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers
AFC South: Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans
AFC West: Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Chargers
The league season culminates with an annual 14-team playoff tournament leading to the Super Bowl championship game. Some NFL teams also play regular-season games outside of the United States; these games have been held in England, Mexico, and Germany.
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The NFL has headquarters in New York City and since 1963 has maintained the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaSuper Bowl results
Super Bowl results are provided in the table.
| season | result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *NFL-AFL championship 1966–70. NFL championship from 1970–71 season onward. | |||||
| **The game was won in overtime. | |||||
| I | 1966–67 | Green Bay Packers (NFL) | 35 | Kansas City Chiefs (AFL) | 10 |
| II | 1967–68 | Green Bay Packers (NFL) | 33 | Oakland Raiders (AFL) | 14 |
| III | 1968–69 | New York Jets (AFL) | 16 | Baltimore Colts (NFL) | 7 |
| IV | 1969–70 | Kansas City Chiefs (AFL) | 23 | Minnesota Vikings (NFL) | 7 |
| V | 1970–71 | Baltimore Colts (AFC) | 16 | Dallas Cowboys (NFC) | 13 |
| VI | 1971–72 | Dallas Cowboys (NFC) | 24 | Miami Dolphins (AFC) | 3 |
| VII | 1972–73 | Miami Dolphins (AFC) | 14 | Washington Redskins (NFC) | 7 |
| VIII | 1973–74 | Miami Dolphins (AFC) | 24 | Minnesota Vikings (NFC) | 7 |
| IX | 1974–75 | Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC) | 16 | Minnesota Vikings (NFC) | 6 |
| X | 1975–76 | Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC) | 21 | Dallas Cowboys (NFC) | 17 |
| XI | 1976–77 | Oakland Raiders (AFC) | 32 | Minnesota Vikings (NFC) | 14 |
| XII | 1977–78 | Dallas Cowboys (NFC) | 27 | Denver Broncos (AFC) | 10 |
| XIII | 1978–79 | Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC) | 35 | Dallas Cowboys (NFC) | 31 |
| XIV | 1979–80 | Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC) | 31 | Los Angeles Rams (NFC) | 19 |
| XV | 1980–81 | Oakland Raiders (AFC) | 27 | Philadelphia Eagles (NFC) | 10 |
| XVI | 1981–82 | San Francisco 49ers (NFC) | 26 | Cincinnati Bengals (AFC) | 21 |
| XVII | 1982–83 | Washington Redskins (NFC) | 27 | Miami Dolphins (AFC) | 17 |
| XVIII | 1983–84 | Los Angeles Raiders (AFC) | 38 | Washington Redskins (NFC) | 9 |
| XIX | 1984–85 | San Francisco 49ers (NFC) | 38 | Miami Dolphins (AFC) | 16 |
| XX | 1985–86 | Chicago Bears (NFC) | 46 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 10 |
| XXI | 1986–87 | New York Giants (NFC) | 39 | Denver Broncos (AFC) | 20 |
| XXII | 1987–88 | Washington Redskins (NFC) | 42 | Denver Broncos (AFC) | 10 |
| XXIII | 1988–89 | San Francisco 49ers (NFC) | 20 | Cincinnati Bengals (AFC) | 16 |
| XXIV | 1989–90 | San Francisco 49ers (NFC) | 55 | Denver Broncos (AFC) | 10 |
| XXV | 1990–91 | New York Giants (NFC) | 20 | Buffalo Bills (AFC) | 19 |
| XXVI | 1991–92 | Washington Redskins (NFC) | 37 | Buffalo Bills (AFC) | 24 |
| XXVII | 1992–93 | Dallas Cowboys (NFC) | 52 | Buffalo Bills (AFC) | 17 |
| XXVIII | 1993–94 | Dallas Cowboys (NFC) | 30 | Buffalo Bills (AFC) | 13 |
| XXIX | 1994–95 | San Francisco 49ers (NFC) | 49 | San Diego Chargers (AFC) | 26 |
| XXX | 1995–96 | Dallas Cowboys (NFC) | 27 | Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC) | 17 |
| XXXI | 1996–97 | Green Bay Packers (NFC) | 35 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 21 |
| XXXII | 1997–98 | Denver Broncos (AFC) | 31 | Green Bay Packers (NFC) | 24 |
| XXXIII | 1998–99 | Denver Broncos (AFC) | 34 | Atlanta Falcons (NFC) | 19 |
| XXXIV | 1999–2000 | St. Louis Rams (NFC) | 23 | Tennessee Titans (AFC) | 16 |
| XXXV | 2000–01 | Baltimore Ravens (AFC) | 34 | New York Giants (NFC) | 7 |
| XXXVI | 2001–02 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 20 | St. Louis Rams (NFC) | 17 |
| XXXVII | 2002–03 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFC) | 48 | Oakland Raiders (AFC) | 21 |
| XXXVIII | 2003–04 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 32 | Carolina Panthers (NFC) | 29 |
| XXXIX | 2004–05 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 24 | Philadelphia Eagles (NFC) | 21 |
| XL | 2005–06 | Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC) | 21 | Seattle Seahawks (NFC) | 10 |
| XLI | 2006–07 | Indianapolis Colts (AFC) | 29 | Chicago Bears (NFC) | 17 |
| XLII | 2007–08 | New York Giants (NFC) | 17 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 14 |
| XLIII | 2008–09 | Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC) | 27 | Arizona Cardinals (NFC) | 23 |
| XLIV | 2009–10 | New Orleans Saints (NFC) | 31 | Indianapolis Colts (AFC) | 17 |
| XLV | 2010–11 | Green Bay Packers (NFC) | 31 | Pittsburgh Steelers (AFC) | 25 |
| XLVI | 2011–12 | New York Giants (NFC) | 21 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 17 |
| XLVII | 2012–13 | Baltimore Ravens (AFC) | 34 | San Francisco 49ers (NFC) | 31 |
| XLVIII | 2013–14 | Seattle Seahawks (NFC) | 43 | Denver Broncos (AFC) | 8 |
| XLIX | 2014–15 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 28 | Seattle Seahawks (NFC) | 24 |
| 50 | 2015–16 | Denver Broncos (AFC) | 24 | Carolina Panthers (NFC) | 10 |
| LI | 2016–17 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 34** | Atlanta Falcons (NFC) | 28 |
| LII | 2017–18 | Philadelphia Eagles (NFC) | 41 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 33 |
| LIII | 2018–19 | New England Patriots (AFC) | 13 | Los Angeles Rams (NFC) | 3 |
| LIV | 2019–20 | Kansas City Chiefs (AFC) | 31 | San Francisco 49ers (NFC) | 20 |
| LV | 2020–21 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFC) | 31 | Kansas City Chiefs (AFC) | 9 |
| LVI | 2021–22 | Los Angeles Rams (NFC) | 23 | Cincinnati Bengals (AFC) | 20 |
| LVII | 2022–23 | Kansas City Chiefs (AFC) | 38 | Philadelphia Eagles (NFC) | 35 |
| LVIII | 2023–24 | Kansas City Chiefs (AFC) | 25** | San Francisco 49ers (NFC) | 22 |
This article was most recently revised and updated by J.E. Luebering.
