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List of NFL champions (1920–1969) facts for kids

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For the list of post-1969 NFL champions, see List of Super Bowl champions.
Akron pros 1920
The 1920 Akron Pros were named the first APFA (NFL) champions.

The National Football League champions, prior to the merger between the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) in 1970, were determined by two different systems. The National Football League was established on September 17, 1920, as the American Professional Football Association (APFA). The APFA changed its name in 1922 to the National Football League, which it has retained ever since. From 1921 to 1931, the APFA/NFL determined its champion by overall win–loss record, with no playoff games; ties were not counted in the winning percentage total. The APFA did not keep records of the 1920 season; they declared the Akron Pros, who finished the season with an 8–0–3 (8 wins, 0 losses, 3 ties) record, as the league's first champions by a vote of the owners. The Canton Bulldogs won two straight championships from 1922 to 1923, and the Green Bay Packers won three in a row from 1929 to 1931.

The 1932 NFL season resulted in a tie for first place between the Chicago Bears and Portsmouth Spartans, and could not be resolved by the typical win–loss system. To settle the tie, a playoff game was played; Chicago won the game and the championship. The following year, the NFL split into two divisions, and the winner of each division would play in the NFL Championship Game. In 1967, the NFL and the rival AFL agreed to merge, effective following the 1969 season; as part of this deal, the NFL champion from 1966 to 1969 would play the AFL champion in an AFL–NFL World Championship Game in each of the four seasons before the completed merger. The NFL Championship Game was ended after the 1969 season, succeeded by the NFC Championship Game. The champions of that game play the champions of the AFC Championship Game in the Super Bowl to determine the NFL champion.

The Green Bay Packers won the most NFL championships before the merger, winning eleven of the fifty championships. The Packers were also the only team to win three straight championships, an achievement they accomplished twice: from 1929–31 and from 1965–67. The Chicago Bears each won a total of eight titles, and the Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, and New York Giants each won four. The Bears recorded the largest victory in a championship game, defeating the Washington Redskins 73–0 in the 1940 NFL Championship Game; six other title games ended in a shutout as well. The Philadelphia Eagles recorded two consecutive shutouts in 1948 and 1949. New York City hosted the most championship games (eight), while the highest-attended title game was the 1955 NFL Championship Game, where 85,693 fans showed up in Los Angeles to watch the Browns beat the Rams 38–14.

APFA/NFL champions (1920–1932)

Champion determined by win–loss percentage. The number in parentheses indicates the number of championships the franchise had won to that point.

Season Champion Wins Losses Ties Pct. Runner-up Wins Losses Ties Pct. Ref.
1920 Akron Pros 8 0 3 1.000 Decatur Staleys 10 1 2 .909
1921 Chicago Staleys 9 1 1 .900 Buffalo All-Americans 9 1 2 .900
1922 Canton Bulldogs 10 0 1 1.000 Chicago Bears 9 3 0 .750
1923 Canton Bulldogs (2) 11 0 1 1.000 Chicago Bears 9 2 1 .818
1924 Cleveland Bulldogs 7 1 1 .875 Chicago Bears 6 1 4 .857
1925 Chicago Cardinals 11 2 1 .846 Pottsville Maroons 10 2 0 .833
1926 Frankford Yellow Jackets 14 1 2 .933 Chicago Bears 12 1 3 .923
1927 New York Giants 11 1 1 .917 Green Bay Packers 7 2 1 .778
1928 Providence Steam Roller 8 1 2 .889 Frankford Yellow Jackets 11 3 2 .786
1929 Green Bay Packers 12 0 1 1.000 New York Giants 13 1 1 .929
1930 Green Bay Packers (2) 10 3 1 .769 New York Giants 13 4 0 .765
1931 Green Bay Packers (3) 12 2 0 .857 Portsmouth Spartans 11 3 0 .786
1932 Chicago Bears (2) 7 1 6 .875 Green Bay Packers 10 3 1 .769

NFL champions (1933–1969)

Numbers in parentheses in the table indicate the number of times that team won the NFL championship as of the championship game.

Divisions/Conferences
Eastern Division (1933–1949)‡ Western Division (1933–1949)^
American Conference (1950–1952)‡ National Conference (1950–1952)^
Eastern Conference (1953–1969)‡ Western Conference (1953–1969)^
NFL Championship Games
Season Date Winning team Score Losing team Venue City Attendance Ref(s)
1933 December 17, 1933 Chicago Bears (3)^ 23–21 New York Giants‡ Wrigley Field Chicago, Illinois 26,000
1934 December 9, 1934 New York Giants (2)‡ 30–13 Chicago Bears^ Polo Grounds New York City, New York 35,059
1935 December 15, 1935 Detroit Lions 26–7 New York Giants‡ University of Detroit Stadium Detroit, Michigan 15,000
1936 December 13, 1936 Green Bay Packers (4)^ 21–6 Boston Redskins‡ Polo Grounds (2) New York City, New York (2) 29,545
1937 December 12, 1937 Washington Redskins‡ 28–21 Chicago Bears^ Wrigley Field (2) Chicago, Illinois (2) 15,870
1938 December 11, 1938 New York Giants (3)‡ 23–17 Green Bay Packers^ Polo Grounds (3) New York City, New York (3) 48,120
1939 December 10, 1939 Green Bay Packers (5)^ 27–0 New York Giants‡ Dairy Bowl West Allis, Wisconsin 32,279
1940 December 8, 1940 Chicago Bears (4)^ 73–0 Washington Redskins‡ Griffith Stadium Washington, D.C. 36,034
1941 December 21, 1941 Chicago Bears (5)^ 37–9 New York Giants‡ Wrigley Field (3) Chicago, Illinois (3) 13,341
1942 December 13, 1942 Washington Redskins (2)‡ 14–6 Chicago Bears^ Griffith Stadium (2) Washington, D.C. (2) 36,006
1943 December 26, 1943 Chicago Bears (6)^ 41–21 Washington Redskins‡ Wrigley Field (4) Chicago, Illinois (4) 34,320
1944 December 17, 1944 Green Bay Packers (6)^ 14–7 New York Giants‡ Polo Grounds (4) New York City, New York (4) 46,016
1945 December 16, 1945 Cleveland Rams^ 15–14 Washington Redskins‡ Cleveland Stadium Cleveland, Ohio 32,178
1946 December 15, 1946 Chicago Bears (7)^ 24–14 New York Giants‡ Polo Grounds (5) New York City, New York (5) 58,346
1947 December 28, 1947 Chicago Cardinals (2)^ 28–21 Philadelphia Eagles‡ Comiskey Park Chicago, Illinois (5) 30,759
1948 December 19, 1948 Philadelphia Eagles‡ 7–0 Chicago Cardinals^ Shibe Park Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 36,309
1949 December 18, 1949 Philadelphia Eagles (2)‡ 14–0 Los Angeles Rams^ Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles, California 27,980
1950 December 24, 1950 Cleveland Browns‡ 30–28 Los Angeles Rams^ Cleveland Stadium (2) Cleveland, Ohio (2) 29,751
1951 December 23, 1951 Los Angeles Rams (2)^ 24–17 Cleveland Browns‡ Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (2) Los Angeles, California (2) 57,522
1952 December 28, 1952 Detroit Lions (2)^ 17–7 Cleveland Browns‡ Cleveland Stadium (3) Cleveland, Ohio (3) 50,934
1953 December 27, 1953 Detroit Lions (3)^ 17–16 Cleveland Browns‡ Briggs Stadium Detroit, Michigan (2) 54,577
1954 December 26, 1954 Cleveland Browns (2)‡ 56–10 Detroit Lions^ Cleveland Stadium (4) Cleveland, Ohio (4) 43,827
1955 December 26, 1955 Cleveland Browns (3)‡ 38–14 Los Angeles Rams^ Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (3) Los Angeles, California (3) 85,693
1956 December 30, 1956 New York Giants (4)‡ 47–7 Chicago Bears^ Yankee Stadium New York City, New York (6) 56,836
1957 December 29, 1957 Detroit Lions (4)^ 59–14 Cleveland Browns‡ Briggs Stadium (2) Detroit, Michigan (3) 55,263
1958 December 28, 1958 Baltimore Colts^ 23–17 New York Giants‡ Yankee Stadium (2) New York City, New York (7) 64,185
1959 December 27, 1959 Baltimore Colts (2)^ 31–16 New York Giants‡ Memorial Stadium Baltimore, Maryland 57,545
1960 December 26, 1960 Philadelphia Eagles (3)‡ 17–13 Green Bay Packers^ Franklin Field Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (2) 67,325
1961 December 31, 1961 Green Bay Packers (7)^ 37–0 New York Giants‡ City Stadium Green Bay, Wisconsin 39,029
1962 December 30, 1962 Green Bay Packers (8)^ 16–7 New York Giants‡ Yankee Stadium (3) New York City, New York (8) 64,892
1963 December 29, 1963 Chicago Bears (8)^ 14–10 New York Giants‡ Wrigley Field (5) Chicago, Illinois (6) 45,801
1964 December 27, 1964 Cleveland Browns (4)‡ 27–0 Baltimore Colts^ Cleveland Stadium (5) Cleveland, Ohio (5) 79,544
1965 January 2, 1966 Green Bay Packers (9)^ 23–12 Cleveland Browns‡ Lambeau Field (2) Green Bay, Wisconsin (2) 50,777
1966 January 1, 1967 Green Bay Packers (10)^ 34–27 Dallas Cowboys‡ Cotton Bowl Dallas, Texas 74,152
1967 December 31, 1967 Green Bay Packers (11)^ 21–17 Dallas Cowboys‡ Lambeau Field (3) Green Bay, Wisconsin (3) 50,861
1968 December 29, 1968 Baltimore Colts (3)^ 34–0 Cleveland Browns‡ Cleveland Stadium (6) Cleveland, Ohio (6) 78,410
1969 January 4, 1970 Minnesota Vikings^ 27–7 Cleveland Browns‡ Metropolitan Stadium Bloomington, Minnesota 46,503

Total championships won (1920–1969)

Club Winners Runners-up Winning years
Green Bay Packers 11 4 1929, 1930, 1931, 1936, 1939, 1944, 1961, 1962, 1965, 1966, 1967
Chicago Bears 8 9 1921, 1932, 1933, 1940, 1941, 1943, 1946, 1963
New York Giants 4 13 1927, 1934, 1938, 1956
Detroit Lions 4 2 1935, 1952, 1953, 1957
Cleveland Browns 4 7 1950, 1954, 1955, 1964
Philadelphia Eagles 3 1 1948, 1949, 1960
Baltimore Colts 3 1 1958, 1959, 1968
Canton Bulldogs 2 0 1922, 1923
Chicago Cardinals 2 1 1925, 1947
Los Angeles Rams 2 3 1945, 1951
Washington Redskins 2 4 1937, 1942
Akron Pros 1 0 1920
Cleveland Bulldogs 1 0 1924
Providence Steam Roller 1 0 1928
Minnesota Vikings 1 0 1969
Frankford Yellow Jackets 1 1 1926
Dallas Cowboys 0 2 N/A
Buffalo All-Americans 0 1 N/A
Pottsville Maroons 0 1 N/A

See also

  • NFC Championship Game
  • AFC Championship Game
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