Through the 2025 season, there have been 106 NFL champions. Technically, there have been 104 NFL Champions as the professional football league that we know as the National Football League was called the American Professional Football Association (APFA) in 1920 and 1921.
From 1920 to 1932, the APFA/NFL champion was the team with the best regular season record, pending the approval of the league’s owners. Here are those champions.
NFL Champions
1920: Akron Pros
1921: Chicago Staleys (Bears)
1922: Canton Bulldogs
1923: Canton Bulldogs
1924: Cleveland Bulldogs
1925: Chicago Cardinals
1926: Frankford Yellow Jackets
1927: New York Giants
1928: Providence Steam Roller
1929: Green Bay Packers
1930: Green Bay Packers
1931: Green Bay Packers
1932: Chicago Bears
The 1932 NFL title was an historical pivot point for the young league. At the completion of the regular season, the Chicago Bears and Portsmouth Spartans (today’s Detroit Lions) were tied. The Bears were 6-1-6 and the Spartans were 6-1-4. In those years, ties were dropped when determining the best record. In those low-scoring years, there were a lot of ties. The Bears and Spartans played in a quickly arranged game to determine the 1932 NFL Champion. This game would change professional football more than any game ever played. The rule changes that came out of this game is a story by itself. The most obvious change, and the only change that matters here, was the addition of an NFL Championship Game to the league schedule.
NFL Championship Games
1933: Chicago Bears 23
New York Giants 21
1934: New York Giants 30
Chicago Bears 13
1935: Detroit Lions 26
New York Giants 7
1936: Green Bay Packers 21
Boston Redskins 6
1937: Washington Redskins 28
Chicago Bears 21
1938: New York Giants 23
Green Bay Packers 17
1939: Green Bay Packers 27
New York Giants 0
1940: Chicago Bears 73
Washington Redskins 0
1941: Chicago Bears 37
New York Giants 9
1942: Washington Redskins 14
Chicago Bears 6
1943: Chicago Bears 41
Washington Redskins 21
1944: Green Bay Packers 14
New York Giants 7
1945: Cleveland Rams 15
Washington Redskins 14
1946: Chicago Bears 24
New York Giants 14
1947: Chicago Cardinals 28
Philadelphia Eagles 21
1948: Philadelphia Eagles 7
Chicago Cardinals 0
1949: Philadelphia Eagles 14
Los Angeles Rams 0
1950: Cleveland Browns 30
Los Angeles Rams 28
At this point, I must introduce the All-America Football Conference. The NFL was challenged by “another league” on several occasions through its 106 years. Most everyone knows about the American Football League. There were actually three of those. Red Grange and his squirrelly agent C.C. “Cash and Carry” Pyle formed the first AFL in 1926. It wasn’t successful and Grange was soon back with the Bears. There was an AFL in the 1940s. That was less successful than the first one. Then there’s the AFL in the 1960s. That was a success as all of the teams from that league are now members of the NFL. The All-America Football Conference was formed in 1946. As players returned home from World War II and the country returned to some degree of normalcy, a few football dreamers decided that there was room for two leagues. The AAFC rivaled the NFL for four seasons. If success of “another league” is measured by its eventual absorption into the NFL, the AAFC was a partial success. The Cleveland Browns, San Francisco 49ers, and Baltimore Colts joined the NFL in 1950. The Colts team that joined the NFL in 1950 is not the Colts team that’s playing in Indianapolis today. It’s not even the Colts team that won titles for Baltimore in the late 1950s. The Colts team that joined the NFL in 1950 folded after a single season. The Colts team that’s playing in Indianapolis today finds it’s origins with the New York Yanks franchise that floundered in 1951, moved to Dallas, became the Texans, and folded after the 1952 season. That Yanks/Texans franchise was re-born as the Baltimore Colts in 1953. The absorption of the Browns and 49ers from the AAFC in 1950 and the nutty Colts addition would change the NFL title landscape. The incredibly talented Browns team would do so immediately. The Colts would do so quickly. The 49ers would eventually have their title run.
1951: Los Angeles Rams 24
Cleveland Browns 17
1952: Detroit Lions 17
Cleveland Browns 7
1953: Detroit Lions 17
Cleveland Browns16
1954: Cleveland Browns 56
Detroit Lions 10
1955: Cleveland Browns 38
Los Angeles Rams 14
1956: New York Giants 47
Chicago Bears 7
1957: Detroit Lions 59
Cleveland Browns 14
1958: Baltimore Colts 23
New York Giants 17
1959: Baltimore Colts 31
New York Giants 16
Here, we must depart from the NFL titles to introduce the AFL titles. The American Football League joined the football fun in 1960 with eight teams peppered about the country. The eight owners, the “Foolish Club,” were determined and wealthy. Some were very, very wealthy. They also had a TV contract and they knew how to use it. The eight owners weren’t foolish. By the end of the decade, all eight teams and two teams added along the way would become part of the NFL.
AFL Championship Games
1960: Houston Oilers 24
Los Angeles Chargers 16
1961: Houston Oilers 10
San Diego Chargers 3
1962: Dallas Texans 20
Houston Oilers 17
1963: San Diego Chargers 51
Boston Patriots 10
1964: Buffalo Bills 20
San Diego Chargers 7
1965: Buffalo Bills 23
San Diego Chargers 0
1966: Kansas City Chiefs 31
Buffalo Bills 7
1967: Oakland Raiders 40
Houston Oilers 7
1968: New York Jets 27
Oakland Raiders 23
1969: Kansas City Chiefs 17
Oakland Raiders 7
Back to the NFL Championship Games
NFL Championship Games
1960: Philadelphia Eagles 17
Green Bay Packers 13
1961: Green Bay Packers 37
New York Giants 0
1962: Green Bay Packers 16
New York Giants 7
1963: Chicago Bears 14
New York Giants 10
1964: Cleveland Browns 27
Baltimore Colts 0
1965: Green Bay Packers 23
Cleveland Browns 12
1966: Green Bay Packers 34
Dallas Cowboys 27
1967: Green Bay Packers 21
Dallas Cowboys 17
1968: Baltimore Colts 34
Cleveland Browns 0
1969: Minnesota Vikings 27
Cleveland Browns 7
The NFL and AFL agreed to merge in June of 1966. Since the two leagues didn’t fully merge until the 1970 season, it would seem that the only thing to come out of the 1966 agreement was to hold a championship game between the two leagues. There was much more to it than that. Pete Rozelle became the commissioner of both leagues, there was a combined draft, and the junior league adopted the same playing rules of the senior league. The AFL competed their final four seasons under the umbrella of the NFL. The only thing kept separate between the two leagues was their regular season and playoffs. At the end of the 1966 season, the champions of the NFL played the champions of the AFL for the first time. The game had names like “World Championship Game” or “AFL-NFL World Championship.” That game wasn’t called the “Super Bowl.” Neither was the 1967 game. Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt came up with “Super Bowl” as the name for the game. He was inspired by the Wham-o Super Ball toy that thrilled his children. One of those children is current Chiefs owner Clark Hunt. I’ve heard various tales as to when “Super Bowl” was officially put into use. Supposedly, it became the official name during the 1968 season. However, the ticket of what should be Super Bowl III had “Third World Championship Game” printed on it. Perhaps the tickets were printed before the decision was made. Who knows? Sometimes, I feel like I’m the only one that even cares. All of the games are Super Bowls now. Through the 2025 season, there have been 60 Super Bowls. Here are those games and the NFL champions from 1966-2021.
1966
Super Bowl I
Green Bay Packers 35
Kansas City Chiefs 10
1967
Super Bowl II
Green Bay Packers 33
Oakland Raiders 14
1968
Super Bowl III
New York Jets 16
Baltimore Colts 7
1969
Super Bowl IV
Kansas City Chiefs 23
Minnesota Vikings 7
1970
Super Bowl V
Baltimore Colts 16
Dallas Cowboys 13
1971
Super Bowl VI
Dallas Cowboys 24
Miami Dolphins 3
1972
Super Bowl VII
Miami Dolphins 14
Washington Redskins 7
1973
Super Bowl VIII
Miami Dolphins 24
Minnesota Vikings 7
1974
Super Bowl IX
Pittsburgh Steelers 16
Minnesota Vikings 6
1975
Super Bowl X
Pittsburgh Steelers 21
Dallas Cowboys 17
1976
Super Bowl XI
Oakland Raiders 32
Minnesota Vikings 14
1977
Super Bowl XII
Dallas Cowboys 27
Denver Broncos 10
1978
Super Bowl XIII
Pittsburgh Steelers 35
Dallas Cowboys 31
1979
Super Bowl XIV
Pittsburgh Steelers 31
Los Angeles Rams 19
1980
Super Bowl XV
Oakland Raiders 27
Philadelphia Eagles 10
1981
Super Bowl XVI
San Francisco 49ers 26
Cincinnati Bengals 21
1982
Super Bowl XVII
Washington Redskins 27
Miami Dolphins 17
1983
Super Bowl XVIII
Los Angeles Raiders 38
Washington Redskins 9
1984
Super Bowl XIX
San Francisco 49ers 38
Miami Dolphins 16
1985
Super Bowl XX
Chicago Bears 46
New England Patriots 10
1986
Super Bowl XXI
New York Giants 39
Denver Broncos 20
1987
Super Bowl XXII
Washington Redskins 42
Denver Broncos 10
1988
Super Bowl XXIII
San Francisco 49ers 20
Cincinnati Bengals 16
1989
Super Bowl XXIV
San Francisco 49ers 55
Denver Broncos 10
1990
Super Bowl XXV
New York Giants 20
Buffalo Bills 19
1991
Super Bowl XXVI
Washington Redskins 37
Buffalo Bills 24
1992
Super Bowl XXVII
Dallas Cowboys 52
Buffalo Bills 17
1993
Super Bowl XVIII
Dallas Cowboys 30
Buffalo Bills 13
1994
Super Bowl XXIX
San Francisco 49ers 49
San Diego Chargers 26
1995
Super Bowl XXX
Dallas Cowboys 27
Pittsburgh Steelers 17
1996
Super Bowl XXXI
Green Bay Packers 35
New England Patriots 21
1997
Super Bowl XXXII
Denver Broncos 31
Green Bay Packers 24
1998
Super Bowl XXXIII
Denver Broncos 34
Atlanta Falcons 19
1999
Super Bowl XXXIV
St. Louis Rams 23
Tennessee Titans 16
2000
Super Bowl XXXV
Baltimore Ravens 34
New York Giants 7
2001
Super Bowl XXXVI
New England Patriots 20
Los Angeles Rams 17
2002
Super Bowl XXXVII
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 48
Oakland Raiders 21
2003
Super Bowl XXXVIII
New England Patriots 32
Carolina Panthers 29
2004
Super Bowl XXXIX
New England Patriots 24
Philadelphia Eagles 21
2005
Super Bowl XL
Pittsburgh Steelers 21
Seattle Seahawks 10
2006
Super Bowl XLI
Indianapolis Colts 29
Chicago Bears 17
2007
Super Bowl XLII
New York Giants 17
New England Patriots 14
2008
Super Bowl XLIII
Pittsburgh Steelers 27
Arizona Cardinals 23
2009
Super Bowl XLIV
New Orleans Saints 31
Indianapolis Colts 17
2010
Super Bowl XLV
Green Bay Packers 31
Pittsburgh Steelers 25
2011
Super Bowl XLVI
New York Giants 21
New England Patriots 17
2012
Super Bowl XLVII
Baltimore Ravens 34
San Francisco 49ers 31
2013
Super Bowl XLVIII
Seattle Seahawks 43
Denver Broncos 8
2014
Super Bowl XLIX
New England Patriots 28
Seattle Seahawks 24
2015
Super Bowl L
Denver Broncos 24
Carolina Panthers 10
2016
Super Bowl LI
New England Patriots 34
Atlanta Falcons 28
2017
Super Bowl LII
Philadelphia Eagles 41
New England Patriots 33
2018
Super Bowl LIII
New England Patriots 13
Los Angeles Rams 3
2019
Super Bowl LIV
Kansas City Chiefs 31
San Francisco 49ers 20
2020
Super Bowl LV
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31
Kansas City Chiefs 9
2021
Super Bowl LVI
Los Angeles Rams 23
Cincinnati Bengals 20
2022
Super Bowl LVII
Kansas City Chiefs 38
Philadelphia Eagles 35
2023
Super Bowl LVIII
Kansas City Chiefs 25
San Francisco 49ers 22
Super Bowl LIX
Philadelphia Eagles 40
Kansas City Chiefs 22
Super Bowl LX
Seattle Seahawks 29
New England Patriots 13
NFL Title Tally
13 Green Bay Packers
9 Chicago Bears
8 New York Giants
6 New England Patriots
6 Pittsburgh Steelers
5 Philadelphia Eagles
5 San Francisco 49ers
5 Dallas Cowboys
5 Washington Commanders
4 Kansas City Chiefs
4 Los Angeles Rams
4 Cleveland Browns
4 Indianapolis Colts
4 Detroit Lions
3 Denver Broncos
3 Las Vegas Raiders
3 Canton/Cleveland Bulldogs
2 Seattle Seahawks
2 Miami Dolphins
2 Arizona Cardinals
2 Baltimore Ravens
2 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
1 New Orleans Saints
1 New York Jets
1 Providence Steam Roller
1 Frankford Yellow Jackets
1 Akron Pros
