The AFL–NFL merger, while announced in 1966, culminated in a significant structural overhaul of professional football before the 1970 season. This period saw the creation of the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC), fundamentally reshaping the league's competitive landscape and laying the groundwork for the modern NFL. The process involved careful negotiation, strategic team realignments, and the integration
of playoff formats from both former leagues, all designed to create a balanced and compelling new entity.
The Birth of Two Conferences
Under the merger agreement, the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL) maintained separate regular-season schedules from 1966 through 1969. However, the ultimate goal was a unified league. Before the 1970 season, this unification took concrete form with the creation of the AFC and NFC. To achieve this, three existing NFL teams—the Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers—agreed to join the ten former AFL teams to constitute the American Football Conference. The remaining thirteen NFL teams, including the Atlanta Falcons, Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, and Washington Redskins, formed the National Football Conference.
This division ensured that the new league would have two conferences of roughly equal size, fostering competitive balance. The combined league retained the "National Football League" name and logo, signifying a continuity with the older, more established league while integrating the successful elements of its former rival.
Divisional Alignment and the Fishbowl Decision
With the creation of the two conferences, it became necessary to further divide them into divisions, typically three per conference, each comprising four or five teams. While the AFC teams quickly established their divisional alignment, largely following geographic lines, the 13 NFC owners faced a more complex challenge in deciding which teams would play in which divisions. The task was particularly intricate given the historical rivalries and geographic spread of the teams.
One early proposal considered placing the two California teams, the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams, together with the three Northeast teams—the New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, and Washington Redskins. This arrangement was reminiscent of the Western Conference's Coastal Division from 1967 to 1969, which had grouped L.A. and S.F. with Baltimore and Atlanta. Ultimately, five distinct proposals for the NFC's divisional structure were developed. To ensure fairness and resolve the impasse, these five combinations were written on slips of paper, sealed in envelopes, and placed into a fishbowl (or, according to some accounts, a flower vase). NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle's secretary, Thelma Elkjer, then drew the official NFC alignment, which turned out to be Plan 3. This plan notably placed Minnesota in the Central Division and Dallas in the Eastern Division, a configuration that differed from many of the other proposals.
The Super Bowl and Playoff Evolution
Since the official merger in 1970, the Super Bowl has consistently featured the champions of the AFC and NFC, determined annually by each conference's playoff tournament. The 1970 playoff format itself was a blend of elements from both former leagues. It stipulated that four teams from each conference would qualify for the postseason, mirroring the 1969 structure. This meant that only the "Best Second Place Team," as it was initially called, would advance to the playoffs. Fans and media quickly dubbed this team the "wild card," a term the NFL soon made official, adding an exciting new dimension to the postseason race. This integrated playoff system, culminating in the Super Bowl, solidified the combined league's structure and created a unified championship spectacle that would capture national attention.
