Andy Devaney
The oldest NFL teams aren’t museum pieces; they’re the spine of autumn Sundays—stitched with grit, trophies and the occasional howler.
With the playoffs closing in and the Super Bowl half-time circus warming up, it’s the right moment to tip the cap to the game’s originals—and square away who’s actually the newest kid on the block.
The five oldest NFL franchises
#5 — Detroit Lions (franchise 1930 as Portsmouth Spartans; Detroit since 1934)
Being a Lions fan can feel like golfing into a headwind with a putter, but history’s the point here. Detroit is the oldest franchise never to appear in a Super Bowl—a stubborn badge they’d love to bin.
The club’s roots trace to the Depression era and a purchase price that wouldn’t cover a modern sideline tablet. It’s a long story—short on February confetti, long on loyalty.
#4 — New York Giants (est. 1925)
New York’s original survivors. The franchise licence reportedly cost $500 in 1924, a bargain that aged like vintage Lombardi. Titles? NFL championships: 1927, 1934, 1938, 1956.
Super Bowls: 1986, 1990, 2007, 2011. Ask a Giants fan about age and pedigree and you’ll get an answer before you’ve folded your slice.
#3 — Chicago Bears (est. 1920; Decatur Staleys → Chicago Staleys → Chicago Bears)
One of the league’s two originals still snarling. Born the Decatur Staleys (1920), rebranded Chicago Staleys (1921), then Chicago Bears (1922). Pre-Super Bowl, they hoarded eight NFL championships; in the modern era,
1985 remains the stuff of posters and nightmares—Ditka, a defence that hit like a falling piano, and an offence that ran through opponents like a rumour. Historic feuds with the Packers, Vikings, Lions and Giants stitch the league’s tapestry.
#2 — Green Bay Packers (est. 1919; joined NFL in 1921)
Community-owned, snow-kissed, and stubbornly grounded in a small town with a big waitlist. The Packers missed the NFL’s 1920 inaugural season, joined in 1921, and never budged.
Silverware? Nine pre-Super Bowl NFL championships (1929, 1930, 1931, 1936, 1939, 1944, 1961, 1962, 1965) plus four Super Bowls (I, II, XXXI, XLV)—13 league titles in total. Also a pub-quiz special: they’ve never changed name or city.
#1 — Arizona Cardinals (est. 1898; Morgan Athletic Club → Racine/Chicago/St. Louis/Phoenix → Arizona)
The Cardinals predate the NFL by two decades, starting life in 1898 as a Chicago amateur side. Along with the Bears, they’re the last of the league’s original year still in uniform.
They’ve moved markets and stadiums more than most—Chicago to St. Louis to the desert—and their trophy case reads NFL championships in 1925 (disputed) and 1947. Super Bowl titles? None. They lost a classic in February 2009 to Pittsburgh. Oldest by birth certificate and by mileage.
The newest franchise (and London’s regular visitors)
- Newest franchise: Houston Texans (2002). The NFL’s most recent expansion team kicked off in 2002, restoring top-flight football to Houston after the Oilers’ relocation. They’re Houston-based, play in the AFC South, and are—simply—the newest franchise.
- London regulars: Jacksonville Jaguars (1995). The Jaguars are not a London franchise, but they’ve become London’s most frequent “home” team, staging regular-season games at Wembley and Tottenham and building the biggest UK footprint of any club—while remaining rooted in Jacksonville.
From leather helmets to instant replay tantrums, the oldest NFL teams have seen it all—title parades, heartbreaks, and enough coaching changes to fill a carousel.
The Texans joined late, London keeps flirting, and February will crown another champion. The past doesn’t just matter; it keeps the scoreboard honest.
