Super Bowl

The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League. The game and its surrounding festivities constitute Super Bowl Sunday which over the years has become an informal U.S. national holiday. The Super Bowl was created as part of the merger agreement between the National Football League (NFL) and its rival, the American Football League (AFL). After its inception in 1920, the NFL fended off several rival leagues before the AFL began play in 1960. The intense competitive war for players and fans led to serious merger talks between the two leagues in 1966.

One of the conditions of the AFL-NFL Merger was that the winners of each league's championship game would meet in a contest to determine the "world champion of football". NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle wanted to call the game "The Big One". During the discussions to iron out the details, AFL founder and Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt had jokingly referred to the proposed interleague championship as the "Super Bowl." Hunt thought of the name after seeing his daughter playing with a toy called a Super Ball. The ball is now on display at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. The name was feasible because postseason college football games had long been known as "bowl games" (the term originates from the Rose Bowl Game, which was in turn named for the bowl-shaped stadium in which it is played). Hunt only meant his suggested name to be a stopgap until a better one could be found. Not having thought of one, the owners named the contest the AFL-NFL World Championship Game. Not surprisingly, fans and media tended to use the shorter, unofficial name. Starting with the third contest in January 1969, the name "Super Bowl" became official. (The previous two games were retroactively re-christened as Super Bowls I and II.)

The Super Bowl is one of the most watched television programs of the year. The game tends on average, 40 percent of all U.S. households tuned into television during the game. This means that on average, 80 to 90 million Americans are tuned into the Super Bowl. It is also estimated that 130-140 million tune into some part of the game.

Super Bowl XXXIX in 2005 was available to a potential audience of approximately one billion. The highest rated game according to Nielsen was Super Bowl XVI in 1982 which was watched in 49.1% of households (73 share) or 40,020,000 households at the time. Super Bowl XVI is #4 on Nielsen's list of top-rated programs of all time, made the top 10.

Following Apple Computer's 1984 commercial introducing the Apple Macintosh computer, the broadcast of the Super Bowl became the premier showcase extravagantly expensive commercials. Famous commercial campaigns include the Budweiser "Bud Bowl" campaign, and the 1999 and 2000 dot-com ads. Prices have increased each year, with reports citing a record $2.5 million (US) for a 30 second spot during Super Bowl XL in 2006. Many people tune in to the Super Bowl solely to watch the commercials. In recent years, the NFL has denied the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority the opportunity to run Super Bowl ads for the city as a tourist destination. The ban includes the game, as well as the pre-game and post-game shows. Many groups are denied the chance to run Super Bowl ads on various grounds, but Las Vegas is the only city to be denied in such a fashion; the NFL has stated that it does not want the Super Bowl to be associated with the perception of Las Vegas as a gambling mecca

There has never been a Super Bowl between two non-division champions.

No Super Bowl game has ever gone into overtime play

No Super Bowl has ever ended in a shutout.

The lowest amount of points scored in a Super Bowl is 3, by the Miami Dolphins

No Team has ever returned the opening kickoff or a punt for a touchdown in a Super Bowl.

The San Francisco 49ers became the first team to win five Super Bowls on January 29, 1995, when they defeated the San Diego Chargers 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX

In Super Bowl XXIV, Joe Montana completed a Super Bowl record 13 consecutive passes. He finished the day with 297 passing yards and a Super Bowl record five touchdown passes. He was also named Super Bowl MVP for a record third time.

Bart Starr was MVP of the first two Super Bowls, regular season MVP in 1966, NFL Man of the Year, Professional Player of the Decade, and the first winner of the Byron White Award. Starr led the Green Bay Packers to 5 NFL titles and 2 Super Bowl wins. He later served as head coach of the Packers (1975-83).

The location of the Super Bowl is chosen by the NFL well in advance, usually 3 to 5 years before the game. Cities compete to host the game in a selection bidding process.

The game has been play in New Orleans, Louisiana (9 times), the Greater Miami Area (8 total, 5 times at the Orange Bowl and 3 times at Dolphin Stadium and the Los Angeles area 7 times. ( 5 times at Rose Bowl stadium and twice at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum) Coincidentally, no NFL team has ever played the Super Bowl on its own home turf. However, Super Bowl XIV (which involved the then-Los Angeles Rams) was played at nearby Pasadena's Rose Bowl stadium; and Super Bowl XIX (which involved the San Francisco 49ers) was played at the nearby on the Stanford University campus.

To quailify a venue must meet these qualifications in order to be a Super Bowl host:

Average high temperature of at least 50 degrees Fahrenheit in February, unless the game is being played in an indoor arena

Stadium with 65,000 seats or more

Space for 10 photo trailers and 40 television trucks

600,000 square feet of exhibit space for fan events

Large, high-end hotel for teams and NFL

50,000 square feet of space for news media ("Radio Row")

Enough "quality" hotel rooms within a one-hour drive for 35% of the stadium's capacity

Separate practice facilities for each team.

The halftime show for the Super Bowl is a highlight of the event and can cost millions to stage.

On February 1, 2004, the live halftime show for Super Bowl XXXVIII, sparked outrage among many viewers when Justin Timberlake, exposed Janet Jackson's right breast in a 'wardrobe malfunction'. Since it was broadcast live, the exposure was seen by millions when it happened.

Janet Jackson's brother Michael Jackson gave a memorable halftime show in 1993 at Super Bowl XXVII which attracted attention at the time only for being a spectacular performance. In 2002, U2 gave the halftime show at Super Bowl XXXVI, shortly after releasing the single "Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of.". U2’s performance was especially moving and important as it was the first halftime show after the September 11th Terrorist attacks in New York City, U2 played "Where the Streets Have No Name" while the names of 9/11 victims scrolled up a screen behind the band, this performance provided one of the most moving and emotional Super Bowl halftime shows in history.

Super Bowl III: New York Jets vs. Baltimore Colts, Miami. Final score 16-7. Super Bowl winners: Jets

Super Bowl IV: Kansas City Chiefs vs. Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans. Final score 23-7. Super Bowl winners: Chiefs

Super Bowl V: Baltimore Colts vs. Dallas Cowboys, Miami. Final score 16-13. Super Bowl Winners: Colts

Super Bowl VI: Dallas Cowboys vs. Miami Dolphins, New Orleans. Final score 24-3. Super Bowl winners: Cowboys

Super Bowl VII: Miami Dolphins vs. Washington Redskins, Los Angeles. Final score 14-7. Super Bowl winners: Dolphins.

Super Bowl VIII: Miami Dolphins vs. Minnesota Vikings, Houston. Final score 24-7. Super Bowl winners: Dolphins

Super Bowl IX: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans. Final score 16-6. Super Bowl winners: Steelers

Super Bowl X: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Dallas Cowboys, Miami. Final score 21-17. Super Bowl winners: Steelers

Super Bowl XI: Oakland Raiders vs. Minnesota Vikings, Pasadena. Final score 32-14. Super Bowl winners: Raiders

Super Bowl XII: Dallas Cowboys vs. Denver Broncos, New Orleans. Final score 27-10. Super Bowl winners: Cowboys.

Super Bowl XIII: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Dallas Cowboys, Miami. Final score 35-31. Super Bowl winners: Steelers

Super Bowl XIV: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Los Angeles Rams, Pasadena. Final score 31-19. Super Bowl winners: Steelers.

Super Bowl XV: Oakland Raiders vs. Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans. Final score 27-10. Super Bowl winners: Raiders

Super Bowl XVI: San Francisco 49ers vs. Cincinatti Bengals, Pontiac. Final score 26-21. Super Bowl winners: 49ers

Super Bowl XVII: Washington Redskins vs. Miami Dolphins, Pasadena. Final score 27-17. Super Bowl winners: Redskins
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Super Bowl XVIII: Los Angeles Raiders vs. Washington Redskins, Tampa. Final score 38-9. Super Bowl winners: Raiders

Super Bowl XIX: San Francisco 49ers vs. Miami Dolphins, Stanford. Final score 38-16. Super Bowl winners: 49ers.

Super Bowl XX: Chicago Bears vs. New England Patriots, New Orleans. Final score 46-10. Super Bowl winners: Bears.

Super Bowl XXI: New York Giants vs. Denver Broncos, Pasadena. Final score 39-20. Super Bowl winners: Giants

Super Bowl XXII: Washington Redskins vs. Denver Broncos, San Diego. Final score 42-10. Super Bowl winners: Redskins

Super Bowl XXIII: San Francisco 49ers vs. Cincinatti Bengals, Miami Gardens. Final score 20-16. Super Bowl winners: 49ers

Super Bowl XXIV: San Francisco 49ers vs. Denver Broncos, New Orleans. Final score 55-10. Super Bowl winners: 49ers

Super Bowl XXV: New York Giants vs. Buffalo Bills, Tampa. Final score 20-19. Super Bowl winners: Giants
Super Bowl XXVI: Washington Redskins vs. Buffalo Bills, Minneapolis. Final score 37-24. Super Bowl winners: Redskins
Super Bowl XXVII: Dallas Cowboys vs. Buffalo Bills, Pasadena. Final score 52-17. Super Bowl winners: Cowboys

Super Bowl XXVIII: Dallas Cowboys vs. Buffalo Bills, Atlanta. Final score 30-13. Super Bowl winners: Cowboys

Super Bowl XXIX: San Francisco 49ers vs. 49-26, San Diego Chargers, Miami Gardens. Final score 49-26. Super Bowl winners: 49ers

Super Bowl XXX: Dallas Cowboys vs. Pittsburgh Steelers, Tempe. Final score 27-17. Super Bowl winners: Cowboys

Super Bowl XXXI: Green Bay Packers vs. New England Patriots, New Orleans. Final score 35-21. Super Bowl winners: Packers

Super Bowl XXXII: Denver Broncos vs. Green Bay Packers, San Diego. Final score 31-24. Super Bowl winners: Broncos

Super Bowl XXXIII: Denver Broncos vs. Atlanta Falcons, Miami Gardens. Final score 34-19. Super Bowl winners: Broncos

Super Bowl XXXIV: St. Louis Rams vs. Tennesee Titans, Atlanta. Final score 23-16. Super Bowl winners: Rams.

Super Bowl XXXV: Baltimore Ravens vs. New York Giants, Tampa. Final score 34-7. Super Bowl winners: Ravens

Super Bowl XXXVI: New England Patriots vs. St Louis Rams, New Orleans. Final score 20-17. Super Bowl winners: Patriots

Super Bowl XXXVII: Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Oakland Raiders, San Diego. Final score 48-21. Super Bowl winners: Buccaneers

Super Bowl XXXVIII: New England Patriots vs. Carolina Panthers, Houston. Final score 32-29. Super Bowl winners: Patriots

Super Bowl XXXIX: New England Patriots vs. Philadelphia Eagles, Jacksonville. Final score 24-21. Super Bowl winners: Patriots

Teams that have never played in a Super Bowl

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Detroit Lions

New Orleans Saints

Arizona Cardinals

Teams that have never won a Super Bowl

Buffalo Bills

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Tennessee Titans

San Diego Chargers

Philadelphia Eagles

Detroit Lions

Minnesota Vikings

Atlanta Falcons

Carolina Panthers

New Orleans Saints

Arizona Cardinals

Seattle Seahawks