The NFL splits its 32 teams evenly between two conferences. Sixteen play in the American Football Conference, and sixteen play in the National Football Conference. NFL teams by conference have worked this way since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. The split still shapes scheduling and the entire playoff bracket. Every team plays within its conference almost exclusively. The only exception is the Super Bowl, the one game where an AFC team can face an NFC team.
This guide covers every team by conference. It also explains how the AFC and NFC actually came to exist, which side has won more Super Bowls, and how each conference seeds its own playoff field.
All 32 NFL Teams by Conference
Each conference has four divisions of four teams, the same structure that has been in place since the 2002 realignment. For the full breakdown of what’s inside each division, see sportDA’s division-by-division guide.
| Division | AFC Teams | NFC Teams |
|---|---|---|
| East | Bills, Dolphins, Patriots, Jets | Cowboys, Giants, Eagles, Commanders |
| North | Ravens, Bengals, Browns, Steelers | Bears, Lions, Packers, Vikings |
| South | Texans, Colts, Jaguars, Titans | Falcons, Panthers, Saints, Buccaneers |
| West | Broncos, Chiefs, Raiders, Chargers | Cardinals, Rams, 49ers, Seahawks |
How the AFC and NFC Were Created
The AFC and NFC exist because of a business merger, not a football decision. The NFL and the rival American Football League agreed to merge in 1970. Both leagues needed a way to combine into equal 13-team conferences. All 10 AFL teams moved into the new AFC automatically.
That left the AFC three teams short. The Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers agreed to leave the older, larger NFL side instead. Each received $3 million to make the switch. The remaining 13 original NFL teams formed the NFC. That basic split, old AFL plus three NFL teams versus the rest of the league, still defines each conference’s rosters more than 50 years later.
AFC vs NFC: Which Conference Has Won More Super Bowls
The NFC actually leads, 31 wins to 29, once every division’s total gets added up. That’s a tighter margin than most fans assume, given how often analysts describe the NFC as the historically stronger side.
Cowboys, 49ers, Giants, Packers, and Steelers dynasties across different decades built most of that gap. The AFC’s count leans heavily on just two franchises. The Patriots and Steelers, tied at 6 titles each, account for nearly half of the entire conference’s total by themselves.
The Only Team to Switch Conferences Twice
Seattle holds a distinction no other franchise shares. The Seahawks entered the NFL in 1976 alongside the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, both expansion teams added in the same offseason. The league placed Seattle in the NFC for that first season. It swapped the two franchises the very next year instead, sending Seattle to the AFC West and Tampa Bay to the NFC Central.
That AFC West stint lasted 25 seasons. The 2002 realignment, triggered by the Houston Texans joining the league, moved Seattle back to the NFC West, the same conference it started in. No other team has ever switched conferences more than once. The Seahawks-Buccaneers pairing remains the only case of two franchises trading conferences with each other.
NFL Playoff Seeding Explained by Conference
Each conference seeds its own 7 playoff teams entirely independently. The four division winners in a conference take seeds 1 through 4, ranked by record. The three next-best teams that didn’t win their division fill seeds 5 through 7 as wild cards. An AFC team’s seed has nothing to do with how any NFC team performed that season, and the reverse holds true too.
That separation lasts through the Conference Championship round. The AFC champion and NFC champion only meet once the entire postseason, in the Super Bowl itself. For the full tiebreaker rules that decide seeding when records tie, see sportDA’s complete playoff format explainer.
The Pro Bowl: AFC vs NFC Off the Field
The conferences even compete outside the regular season. The Pro Bowl Games pit an AFC roster against an NFC roster every year. The format has shifted to 7-on-7 flag football since 2023, though, rather than a traditional tackle game. The NFC won the 2026 edition 66-52 during Super Bowl LX week in San Francisco, its fourth straight win since the flag football format began.
That victory pushed the NFC to a 27-26 all-time lead over the AFC, counting the event’s full history. The margin sits close enough that either conference’s next win could flip the all-time series.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many teams are in the AFC and NFC?
16 each, for 32 teams total. Both conferences run four divisions of four teams apiece.
Which conference has won more Super Bowls?
The NFC has 31 titles to the AFC’s 29. Cowboys, 49ers, Giants, Packers, and Steelers-era dominance across different decades built most of that lead.
Why do the AFC and NFC exist?
The NFL merged with the rival American Football League in 1970. All 10 AFL teams formed the core of the new AFC. Three NFL teams, the Colts, Browns, and Steelers, joined them for $3 million each to even out the conference sizes.
Has any team ever switched conferences?
Yes, Seattle switched twice: to the NFC in 1976, to the AFC West in 1977, and then back to the NFC West in 2002. No other franchise has changed conferences more than once.
How does playoff seeding work between conferences?
Each conference seeds its own 7 teams independently, based only on games and standings within that conference. The AFC and NFC brackets never interact until the Super Bowl.
Do the AFC and NFC play each other during the regular season?
Yes, every team plays a set number of interconference games each year on a rotating cycle. Those results don’t affect a team’s own conference seeding beyond adding to its overall win total, though.
What is the Pro Bowl’s all-time AFC vs. NFC record?
The NFC leads 27-26 as of the 2026 Pro Bowl Games. That includes a 66-52 flag football win that extended the NFC’s streak to four straight since the event switched to a non-contact format in 2023.
NFL teams by conference comes down to a 16-16 split that has held firm since 1970. Individual teams have relocated and changed names since, and Seattle even switched sides entirely. The conferences still stay separate for almost the entire season. That holds right up until the moment the Super Bowl finally puts an AFC team across from an NFC one. For the complete roster of all 32 franchises in one place, see sportDA’s alphabetical team list.
