AFC Championship Game

The first AFC Championship Game was played following the 1970 regular season after the merger between the NFL and the American Football League. The game is considered the successor to the former AFL Championship, and its game results are listed with that of its predecessor in the annual NFL Record and Fact Book.[2] Since the pre-merger NFL consisted of six more teams than the AFL (16 teams for the NFL and 10 for the AFL), a realignment was required as part of the merger to create two conferences with an equal number of teams: The NFL's Baltimore Colts, the Cleveland Browns, and the Pittsburgh Steelers joined the ten former AFL teams to form the AFC; while the remaining 13 pre-merger NFL clubs formed the NFC.

Every current AFC team except the Houston Texans has played in an AFC Championship Game at least once. The Seattle Seahawks, who have been members in both the AFC and the NFC, hold the distinction of appearing in both conference title games, a loss in the AFC conference title game to the Los Angeles Raiders for Super Bowl XVIII and, in their first appearance in a NFC conference title game, a win over the Carolina Panthers for Super Bowl XL. The Pittsburgh Steelers have the most appearances in the AFC Championship Game at 16, with 11 of those games being in Pittsburgh, the most for either conference. The New England Patriots have won the most AFC Championships at 11, and played in a record eight straight AFC title games (2011–2018). At least one of Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger played in every championship game between the 2003 and the 2018 seasons, except for the 2009 season.

The Denver Broncos and the Pittsburgh Steelers are the only two AFC teams to appear in at least one AFC Championship game in every decade since 1970.

The redesigned Lamar Hunt Trophy, awarded since 2010–11 season

The structure of the NFL playoffs has changed several times since 1970. At the end of each regular season, the top teams in the AFC qualify for the postseason, including all division champions (three division winners from the 1970–71 to 2001–02 seasons; four since the 2002–03 season) and a set number of "wild card" teams that possess the two best win–loss records after the regular season yet fail to win their division (one wild card team from the 1970–71 to 1977–78 seasons; two wild cards from 1978–79 to 1989–90, and from 2002–03 to 2019–20; three from 1990–91 to 2001–02, and since 2020–21). The two teams remaining following the wild-card round (first round) and the divisional round (second round) play in the AFC Championship Game, with the winner advancing to the Super Bowl.

Initially, the site of the AFC Championship Game was determined on a rotating basis. Since the 1975–76 season, the site of the game has been based on playoff seeding based on the regular season won-loss record, with the highest surviving seed hosting the game. A wild card team can only host the game if both participants are wild cards; such an instance has yet to occur in the NFL.[3]

For the 2022–23 season, NFL owners passed a temporary modification to accommodate for a Buffalo Bills–Cincinnati Bengals regular season game that was eventually canceled after Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest in the first quarter of that contest. (See also Damar Hamlin § In-game collapse.) The league decided neither to resume nor replay the game, and therefore both Buffalo and Cincinnati finished the regular season with one less game than the other NFL teams.[4] Because both the Bills and the Kansas City Chiefs ended with the same number of regular season losses, it was decided that a Buffalo–Kansas City AFC Championship Game would be played at a neutral site, Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, if both teams advanced that far.[5][6] This never came to fruition, as the Bengals defeated the Bills in the divisional round.

External image
The (former version of the) Lamar Hunt Trophy on display at a press conference at the Westin Hotel in Denver, Colorado. Getty Images. January 20, 2006.

Beginning with the 1984–85 NFL playoffs,[1] the winner of the AFC Championship Game has received the Lamar Hunt Trophy, named after the founder of the AFL. The original trophy consisted of a wooden base with a sculpted AFC logo in the front and a sculpture of various football players in the back.

For the 2010–11 NFL playoffs, the Lamar Hunt Trophy and the George Halas Trophy, which is awarded to the NFC Champion, were redesigned by Tiffany & Co. at the request of the NFL, in an attempt to make both awards more significant.[7] The trophies are now a new, silver design with the outline of a hollow football positioned on a small base to more closely resemble the Vince Lombardi Trophy, which is awarded to the winner of the Super Bowl.[8]

In recent years Conference championship rings are also awarded to members of the team who wins the AFC or NFC championship since they are the winners of the conference, even though they may not necessarily follow it up with a win in the Super Bowl.[9][10]

Numbers in parentheses in the table are AFC Championships. Bold indicates team won Super Bowl that year.

Numbers in parentheses in the city and stadium column is the number of times that metropolitan area and stadium has hosted an AFC Championship, respectively.

^ a: Overtime

In the sortable table below, teams are ordered first by number of appearances, then by number of wins, and finally by year of first appearance.

^ b: The Seahawks were members of the NFC in 1976 and then members of the AFC from 1977 to 2001, before rejoining the NFC in 2002. Including their appearances in the NFC Championship Game (3–0), they hold a combined 3–1 record between both Conference Championship Games.

^ c: The Buccaneers were members of the AFC in 1976 before moving to the NFC in 1977.

^ d: Includes appearances during their first tenure in Oakland (the 1970 merger until 1981), where they went 2–5 in AFC Championship Games; their period as the Los Angeles Raiders (1982–1994), where they went 1–1 in AFC Championship Games; and their second tenure in Oakland (1995–2019), where they went 1–1 in AFC Championship Games. Since moving to Las Vegas in 2020, the Raiders are 0–0 in AFC Championship Games.

^ e: Includes appearances as the Baltimore Colts (the 1970 merger to 1983), where they went 1–1 in AFC Championship Games. Since moving to Indianapolis in 1984, the Colts are 2–3 in AFC Championship Games.

^ f: Includes appearances as the Houston Oilers (the 1970 merger to 1996), where they went 0–2 in AFC Championship Games. Since moving to Tennessee in 1997, they are 1–2 in AFC Championship Games.

In the sortable table below, teams are ordered first by number of appearances, then by number of wins, and finally by year of first appearance. In the "Season(s)" column, bold years indicate winning Conference Championship appearances.

The table below shows AFC Championship Game records by division, based on the division the franchise was in during the season the championship game was played. The NFL realigned divisions prior to the 2002 season, renaming the AFC Central as the AFC North, creating the AFC South, and shifting several teams among the divisions.

[Table yet to be added]

AFC Championship Game logo, 2001–2005

AFC Championship Game logo, 2008–2010 (Used with old shield since 2005)

• Most victories: 11**; New England Patriots (1985, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018)
• Most losses: 8; Pittsburgh Steelers, (1972, 1976, 1984, 1994, 1997, 2001, 2004, 2016)
• Most appearances: 16; Pittsburgh Steelers (1972, 1974–1976, 1978, 1979, 1984, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2016)
• Most consecutive appearances: 8**; New England Patriots (2011–2018)
• Most consecutive victories: 4**; Buffalo Bills (1990–1993)
• Most appearances without a win: 4; New York Jets (1982, 1998, 2009, 2010)
• Most consecutive losses without a win: 4; (tie) Oakland Raiders (1970, 1973, 1974, 1975)
• Most shutouts: 2**; Miami Dolphins (1971, 21–0 vs Colts and 1982, 14–0 vs Jets)
• Most consecutive losses: 3; Oakland Raiders (1973–1975)
• Most games hosted: 11**; Pittsburgh Steelers (1972, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2001, 2004, 2008, 2010)
• Most consecutive games hosted: 5**; Kansas City Chiefs (2018–2022)
• Most numerous matchups: 3 (tie)
  • Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Oakland Raiders (1974, 1975, 1976)
  • Cleveland Browns vs. Denver Broncos (1986, 1987, 1989)
  • New England Patriots vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (2001, 2004, 2016)
  • New England Patriots vs. Indianapolis Colts (2003, 2006, 2014)
• Most points scored: 51**; January 20, 1991 (1990) – Buffalo Bills (51) vs. Los Angeles Raiders (3)
• Largest margin of victory: 48 points**; January 20, 1991 (1990) – Buffalo Bills (51) vs. Los Angeles Raiders (3)
• Fewest points scored, winning team: 10; January 12, 1992 (1991) – Buffalo Bills (10) vs. Denver Broncos (7)
• Fewest points scored: 0*; (tie) Jan 2, 1972 (1971) Baltimore Colts 0 vs Dolphins 21, Jan 23, 1983 (1982) NY Jets (0) vs Dolphins (14)
• Most points scored, losing team: 34**; January 21, 2007 (2006) – New England Patriots (34) vs. Indianapolis Colts (38)
• Most combined points scored: 73**; January 6, 1985 (1984) – Miami Dolphins (45) vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (28)
• Fewest combined points scored: 14; January 23, 1983 (1982) – Miami Dolphins (14) vs. New York Jets (0)
• Current AFC teams which have never appeared in a Conference Championship Game: Houston Texans[fn 2]
• Current AFC teams which have never hosted a Conference Championship Game: Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans,[fn 2] New York Jets,[fn 3] Tennessee Titans[fn 4]
• Current AFC teams which have never won a Conference Championship: Cleveland Browns (0–3), Houston Texans (0–0), Jacksonville Jaguars (0–3) and New York Jets (0–4)
• Longest drought without appearing in an AFC Championship Game: 32 years; Cleveland Browns (last appearance – 1989)
• Longest drought without an AFC Championship: 50 years**: New York Jets[fn 5]
• Highest attendance: 91,445; Los Angeles Raiders vs. Seattle Seahawks in Los Angeles on January 8, 1984 (1983)
• Overtime games:
  • 1986 Denver Broncos 23 Cleveland Browns 20
  • 2018 New England Patriots 37 Kansas City Chiefs 31
  • 2021 Cincinnati Bengals 27 Kansas City Chiefs 24

Notes:

• *Tied for Conference Championship record
• **Conference Championship record

• 1982: 51.6 million viewers[11]
• 2003: 41.5 million
• 2005: 44.3 million
• 2006: 39 million viewers[12]
• 2007: 46.7 million viewers[13]
• 2009: 42 million viewers[14]
• 2010: 42.352 million viewers
• 2011: 54.9 million viewers[15]
• 2012: 48.7 million viewers[16][17]
• 2013: 47.7 million viewers[18]
• 2014: 51.3 million viewers[19]
• 2015: 42.1 million viewers[20]
• 2016: 53.3 million viewers[21]
• 2017: 41.2 million viewers[22]
• 2018: 53.9 million viewers[23]
• 2019: 41.1 million viewers[23]
• 2020: 41.85 million viewers[24]
• 2021: 47.85 million viewers[25]
• 2022: 53.12 million viewers[26]