View source for National Football Conference

{{short description|One of two conferences in the National Football League}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2019}}
{{Infobox sports league
| title           = National Football Conference
| league          = [[National Football League]]
| logo            = National_Football_Conference_logo.svg
| caption         = National Football Conference logo<br>(2010–present)
| pixels          = 150px
| formerly        = [[National Football League]] (NFL), pre–[[AFL–NFL merger|merger]]
| sport           = [[American football]]
| founded         = 1970
| teams           = 16
| champion        = [[Philadelphia Eagles]] (5th title)
| most_champs     = [[Dallas Cowboys]]<br />[[San Francisco 49ers]]<!-- These are for CONFERENCE titles since the 1970 merger, not NFL League titles or Super Bowls --> (8 titles)
}}

The '''National Football Conference''' ('''NFC''') is a [[Athletic conference|conference]] of the [[National Football League]] (NFL), the highest level of professional [[American football]] in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the [[American Football Conference]] (AFC), each have 16 teams organized into four [[Division (sport)|divisions]].
Both conferences were created as part of the [[AFL–NFL merger|1970 NFL merger]] with the rival [[American Football League]] (AFL). All ten of the former AFL teams and three NFL teams formed the AFC while the remaining thirteen NFL clubs formed the NFC. A series of league expansions and division realignments have occurred since the merger, thus making a total of 16 clubs in each conference.

The defending champions of the NFC are the [[Philadelphia Eagles]], who defeated the [[Washington Commanders]] in the [[2024 NFL season|2024 season]]'s [[NFC Championship Game]] for their fifth conference championship in the team's history.

As of 2025 the NFC only has one defined officer, the president, which is essentially an honorary position with few powers and mostly ceremonial duties, including awarding the conference championship trophy.<ref name="NFL Bylaws">{{Cite web |date=2006 |title=Constitution and Bylaws of the National Football League |url=https://www.onlabor.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/co_.pdf |access-date=December 29, 2025 |website=OnLabor |pages=26–35}}</ref>

==Teams==
Since 2002, like the AFC, the NFC has 16 teams that organized into four [[Division (sport)|divisions]] each with four teams: [[NFC East|East]], [[NFC North|North]], [[NFC South|South]], and [[NFC West|West]].

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:left"
! Division
! Team
! Stadium
! Location
|-
! style=background:white rowspan=4 | [[NFC East|East]]
| '''[[Dallas Cowboys]]'''
| [[AT&T Stadium]]
| [[Arlington, Texas]]
|-
| '''[[New York Giants]]'''
| [[MetLife Stadium]]
| [[East Rutherford, New Jersey]]
|-
| '''[[Philadelphia Eagles]]'''
| [[Lincoln Financial Field]]
| [[Philadelphia|Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]]
|-
| '''[[Washington Commanders]]'''
| [[Northwest Stadium]]
| [[Landover, Maryland]]
|-
! style=background:white rowspan=4 | [[NFC North|North]]
| '''[[Chicago Bears]]'''
| [[Soldier Field]]
| [[Chicago|Chicago, Illinois]]
|-
| '''[[Detroit Lions]]'''
| [[Ford Field]]
| [[Detroit|Detroit, Michigan]]
|-
| '''[[Green Bay Packers]]'''
| [[Lambeau Field]]
| [[Green Bay, Wisconsin]]
|-
| '''[[Minnesota Vikings]]'''
| [[U.S. Bank Stadium]]
| [[Minneapolis|Minneapolis, Minnesota]]
|-
! style=background:white rowspan=4 | [[NFC South|South]]
| '''[[Atlanta Falcons]]'''
| [[Mercedes-Benz Stadium]]
| [[Atlanta|Atlanta, Georgia]]
|-
| '''[[Carolina Panthers]]'''
| [[Bank of America Stadium]]
| [[Charlotte, North Carolina]]
|-
| '''[[New Orleans Saints]]'''
| [[Caesars Superdome]]
| [[New Orleans|New Orleans, Louisiana]]
|-
| '''[[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]]'''
| [[Raymond James Stadium]]
| [[Tampa, Florida]]
|-
! style=background:white rowspan=4 | [[NFC West|West]]
| '''[[Arizona Cardinals]]''' 
| [[State Farm Stadium]]
| [[Glendale, Arizona]]
|-
| '''[[Los Angeles Rams]]'''
|[[SoFi Stadium]]
| [[Inglewood, California]]
|-
| '''[[San Francisco 49ers]]'''
| [[Levi's Stadium]]
| [[Santa Clara, California]]
|-
| '''[[Seattle Seahawks]]'''
| [[Lumen Field]]
| [[Seattle|Seattle, Washington]]
|}

==Season structure==
<!--Table must be updated for NFC champions-->
{{main|NFL regular season|NFL playoffs}}
<div class="thumb tright">
<div class="thumbinner" style="width:375px;">
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:90%"
|-
! {{abbr|POS|Position}} !! AFC East !! AFC North !! AFC South !! AFC West
|-
| 1st || style="background-color:#ffcccc"|[[Buffalo Bills|Bills]] || [[Baltimore Ravens|Ravens]] || [[Houston Texans|Texans]] || style="background-color:#ffff00"|[[Kansas City Chiefs|Chiefs]]
|-
| 2nd || [[Miami Dolphins|Dolphins]] || [[Pittsburgh Steelers|Steelers]] || [[Indianapolis Colts|Colts]] || style="background-color:#ffff00"|[[Los Angeles Chargers|Chargers]]
|-
| 3rd || [[New York Jets|Jets]] || [[Cincinnati Bengals|Bengals]] || [[Jacksonville Jaguars|Jaguars]] || style="background-color:#ffff00"|[[Denver Broncos|Broncos]]
|-
| 4th || [[New England Patriots|Patriots]] || [[Cleveland Browns|Browns]] || [[Tennessee Titans|Titans]] || style="background-color:#ffff00"|[[Las Vegas Raiders|Raiders]]
|-
! {{abbr|POS|Position}} !! NFC East !! NFC North !! NFC South !! NFC West
|-
| 1st || style="background-color:#00ff00"|[[Philadelphia Eagles|Eagles]] || style="background-color:#ffff00"|[[Detroit Lions|Lions]] || style="background-color:#ffaa00"|[[Tampa Bay Buccaneers|Buccaneers]] || style="background-color:#ffaa00"|[[Los Angeles Rams|Rams]]
|-
| 2nd || style="background-color:#add8e6"|[[Washington Commanders|Commanders]] || style="background-color:#ffff00"|[[Minnesota Vikings|Vikings]] || [[Atlanta Falcons|Falcons]] || [[Seattle Seahawks|Seahawks]]
|-
| 3rd || style="background-color:#add8e6"|[[Dallas Cowboys|Cowboys]] || style="background-color:#ffff00"|[[Green Bay Packers|Packers]] || [[Carolina Panthers|Panthers]] || [[Arizona Cardinals|Cardinals]]
|-
| 4th || style="background-color:#add8e6"|[[New York Giants|Giants]] || style="background-color:#ffff00"|[[Chicago Bears|Bears]] || [[New Orleans Saints|Saints]] || [[San Francisco 49ers|49ers]]
|}
<div class="thumbcaption">
This chart of the [[2024 NFL season#Regular season standings|2024 season standings]] displays an application of the NFL scheduling formula. The [[2024 Philadelphia Eagles season|Eagles in 2024]] finished in first place in the [[NFC East]]. Thus, [[2025 Philadelphia Eagles season|in 2025]], the Eagles (highlighted in green) will play two games against each of its division rivals (highlighted in light blue), one game against each team in the [[NFC North]] and [[AFC West]] (highlighted in yellow), and one game each against the first-place finishers in the [[NFC South]], [[NFC West]] (highlighted in orange), and [[AFC East]] (highlighted in pink).</div>
</div>
</div>
The fourteen opponents each team faces over the 17-game regular season schedule are set using a predetermined formula:

Each NFC team plays the other teams in their respective division twice (home and away) during the regular season, in addition to eleven other games assigned to their schedule by the NFL: three games are assigned on the basis of a particular team's final divisional standing from the previous season, and the remaining eight games are split between the roster of two other NFL divisions. This assignment shifts each year and will follow a standard cycle. Using the 2023 regular season schedule as an example, each team in the NFC East plays against every team in the NFC West and AFC East. In this way, non-divisional competition will be mostly among common opponents – the exception being the three games assigned based on the team's prior-season divisional standing.

At the end of each season, the four division winners and three [[Wild card (sports)|wild cards]] (non-division winners with best regular season record) in the NFC qualify for the [[NFL playoffs|playoffs]]. The NFC playoffs culminate in the [[NFC Championship Game]] with the winner receiving the [[George Halas|George S. Halas]] Trophy.<ref name="z576">{{cite web | title=George Halas etched his name in NFL history then onto the NFC Championship trophy ' NFL 100 | work=FOX Sports | date=2020-01-19 | url=https://www.foxsports.com/watch/1679809603586 | access-date=2024-12-07}}</ref> The NFC champion then plays the [[American Football Conference|AFC]] champion in the [[Super Bowl]]. As of 2025 the NFC representative team has won the Super Bowl 29 out of the 55 total editions with the [[Philadelphia Eagles]] being the most recent to do so in [[Super Bowl LIX|2025]]. The [[Dallas Cowboys]] and [[San Francisco 49ers]] are currently both tied for the most NFC conference championships with 8 and the most super bowls won by a member of the NFC with 5. 

==History==
Both the AFC and NFC were created after the NFL [[AFL–NFL merger|merged]] with the [[American Football League]] (AFL) in 1970.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/WAKI-ViewArticle.aspx?pin=x-fo055624a&article_id=608&chapter_id=13&chapter_title=Sports&article_title=Pro_Football_History|title=Pro Football – History|access-date=April 3, 2009|archive-date=January 4, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100104075832/http://www.worldalmanacforkids.com/WAKI-ViewArticle.aspx?pin=x-fo055624a&article_id=608&chapter_id=13&chapter_title=Sports&article_title=Pro_Football_History|url-status=dead}}</ref> When the AFL began play in 1960 with eight teams, the NFL consisted of 13 clubs. By 1969, the AFL had expanded to ten teams and the NFL to 16 clubs. In order to balance the merged league, all ten of the former AFL teams along with the NFL's [[Cleveland Browns]], [[Pittsburgh Steelers]], and [[Baltimore Colts]] formed the AFC, while the remaining 13 NFL teams formed the NFC.

While the newly formed AFC had already agreed upon and set up their divisional alignment plan along almost purely geographic lines, team owners could not agree to a plan on how to align the clubs in the NFC. The alignment proposals were narrowed down to five finalists (each one sealed in an envelope), and then the plan that was eventually selected was picked out of a glass bowl by then-NFL commissioner [[Pete Rozelle]]'s secretary, Thelma Elkjer,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/02/27/sports/sports-of-the-times-the-woman-who-aligned-the-nfc-teams.html |title=Sports of The Times; The Woman Who Aligned the N.F.C. Teams |last=Anderson |first=Dave |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=February 27, 2000 |access-date=June 22, 2018}}</ref> on January 16, 1970.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/1999/10/07/nfl-to-try-realign-play-tagliabue-calls-for-8-four-team-divisions-ravens-may-stay-put/ | title=NFL to try realign play | publisher=[[Baltimore Sun]] | first=Vito | last=Stellino | date=October 7, 1999 | access-date=January 24, 2010}}</ref>

The five alignment plans for the NFC in 1970 were as follows, with Plan 3 eventually selected:

*Plan 1
**Eastern – [[Atlanta Falcons]], [[Minnesota Vikings]], [[New York Giants]], [[Philadelphia Eagles]], [[Washington Redskins]]
**Central – [[Chicago Bears]], [[Detroit Lions]], [[Green Bay Packers]], [[New Orleans Saints]]
**Western – [[Dallas Cowboys]], [[Los Angeles Rams]], [[History of the St. Louis Cardinals (NFL)|St. Louis Cardinals]], [[San Francisco 49ers]]
*Plan 2
**Eastern – Minnesota, New York Giants, Philadelphia, Washington
**Central – Atlanta, Dallas, New Orleans, St. Louis
**Western – Chicago, Detroit, Green Bay, Los Angeles, San Francisco 
*'''Plan 3'''
**'''Eastern – Dallas, New York Giants, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Washington'''
**'''Central – Chicago, Detroit, Green Bay, Minnesota'''
**'''Western – Atlanta, Los Angeles, New Orleans, San Francisco'''
*Plan 4
**Eastern – Minnesota, New York Giants, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Washington
**Central – Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Green Bay
**Western – Dallas, New Orleans, Los Angeles, San Francisco 
*Plan 5
**Eastern – Detroit, Minnesota, New York Giants, Philadelphia, Washington 
**Central – Chicago, Dallas, Green Bay, St. Louis 
**Western – Atlanta, Los Angeles, New Orleans, San Francisco

Three [[expansion team]]s have joined the NFC since the merger, thus making the total 16. When the [[Seattle Seahawks]] and the [[Tampa Bay Buccaneers]] joined the league in [[1976 NFL season|1976]], they were temporarily placed in the NFC and AFC, respectively, for one season before they switched conferences. The Seahawks returned to the NFC as a result of the [[2002 NFL season#Expansion and realignment|2002 realignment]]. The [[Carolina Panthers]] joined the NFC in [[1995 NFL season|1995]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Taranto |first=Steven |date=June 24, 2019 |title=The First Team: The Story of the 1995 Carolina Panthers |url=https://247sports.com/longformarticle/1995-carolina-panthers-team-story-133033310/ |access-date=2024-05-16 |website=247Sports |language=en}}</ref>

[[Parity (sports)|Parity]] is generally greater among NFC teams than AFC teams. The only NFC team that has never made a [[Super Bowl]] appearance is the [[Detroit Lions]]. Since the 2002 division realignment, the NFC has sent 12 different teams to the Super Bowl—all except the Lions, Vikings, Cowboys, and Commanders—whereas the AFC has only sent 8: the [[Baltimore Ravens]] (1 time), the [[Cincinnati Bengals]] (1 time), the [[Las Vegas Raiders]] (1 time), the [[Kansas City Chiefs]] (4 times), the [[Denver Broncos]] (2 times), the [[Indianapolis Colts]] (2 times), the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] (3 times) and the [[New England Patriots]] (8 times). The only NFC team to make back to back Super Bowls since 2002 are the [[Seattle Seahawks]].

As of 2021, the only pre-merger team that does not play in its 1969 market is the [[History of the St. Louis Cardinals (NFL)|St. Louis Cardinals]], who moved in 1988 to [[Phoenix, Arizona|Phoenix]] suburb of [[Tempe, Arizona|Tempe]] (they moved to [[Glendale, Arizona|Glendale]] in 2006). The [[Los Angeles Rams]] [[History of the St. Louis Rams|moved to St. Louis]] in 1995, but moved back to Los Angeles in 2016. None of the expansion teams added after 1970 have relocated.

With the exception of the aforementioned relocations since that time, the [[National Football Conference#Teams|divisional setup]] established in 2002 has remained static ever since.

==Logo==
[[Image:National Football Conference logo old.svg|right|thumb|150px|Original National Football Conference logo (1970–2009)]]
The original NFC logo, in use from 1970 to 2009, depicted a blue 'N' with three stars across it. The new logo was similar to that of the AFC (which itself was similar to the AFL logo) in that unlike the NFL logo it consisted of a single letter instead of a full abbreviation. The three stars represented the three divisions that were used from 1970 to 2001 (Eastern, Central and Western).<ref>{{cite web | title=National Football Conference Primary Logo | website=SportsLogos.Net | url=https://www.sportslogos.net/logos/view/4715/National-Football-Conference-Logo/1970/Primary-Logo | access-date=2025-08-10}}</ref> The 2010 NFL season brought an updated NFC logo. Largely similar to the old logo, the new logo has a fourth star, representing the four divisions that have composed the NFC since 2002,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.uniwatchblog.com/2010/03/02/but-i-absolutely-refuse-to-write-about-the-draft-caps/ |title=But I Absolutely Refuse to Write About the Draft Caps |author=Paul Lukas |publisher=Uni Watch blog |access-date=April 16, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100506134900/http://www.uniwatchblog.com/2010/03/02/but-i-absolutely-refuse-to-write-about-the-draft-caps/ |archive-date=May 6, 2010 }}</ref> with the AFC logo being simultaneously updated in a similar manner.

==Television==
[[NFL on CBS|CBS]] aired the NFC's Sunday afternoon and playoffs games from 1970 through the 1993 season. From 1994 to 2013, [[Fox NFL|Fox]] was the primary rightsholder to the NFC's games. In those years, all interconference games in which the NFC team was the visiting team were broadcast on either CBS or Fox. Since 2014, the cross-flex policy allows select NFC games (that involve them playing an AFC team at home or intraconference games) to be moved from Fox to CBS. Since 1990, select NFC playoff games have been seen on ABC or ESPN.

==See also==
*[[NFC Championship Game]]
*[[American Football Conference]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{National Football League}}
{{Navboxes|list=
{{Arizona Cardinals}}
{{Atlanta Falcons}}
{{Carolina Panthers}}
{{Chicago Bears}}
{{Dallas Cowboys}}
{{Detroit Lions}}
{{Green Bay Packers}}
{{Los Angeles Rams}}
{{Minnesota Vikings}}
{{New Orleans Saints}}
{{New York Giants}}
{{Philadelphia Eagles}}
{{San Francisco 49ers}}
{{Seattle Seahawks}}
{{Tampa Bay Buccaneers}}
{{Washington Commanders}}
}}

[[Category:National Football League]]
[[Category:Sports organizations established in 1970]]
[[Category:1970 establishments in the United States]]