By Zane Miller
The San Francisco 49ers will take on the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII, the 104th overall championship in the history of the NFL. The two teams previously played against each other in Super Bowl LIV during the 2019 season, making this the first repeat championship matchup since the New England Patriots and Los Angeles Rams faced off in Super Bowl LIII to decide the 2018 campaign.
The 49ers come into the contest with a 5 for 7 success rate in their previous Super Bowl matchups, dominating throughout the 1980's with four titles during the decade including back-to-back victories in 1988 and 1989, with another Super Bowl coming in 1994 for good measure. However, the team's most recent appearances have not gone as well, as they fell to the Baltimore Ravens in 2012 and the same Chiefs in 2019.
As for the Chiefs, to go along with the 2019 win they are also looking to become the first team since the 2004 Patriots (and 17th team overall) to win back-to-back NFL titles as they also earned the 2022 championship against the Philadelphia Eagles. The team came up short in their previous opportunity to repeat as champions in 2020, falling to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Additionally, Kansas City won Super Bowl IV against the Minnesota Vikings while in the American Football League during the 1969 season, after losing in the first Super Bowl ever played in 1966 against the Green Bay Packers.
Out of the 256 potential Super Bowl matchups, 53 of them have occurred so far.
The most common title matchup out of the ones that could still be possible to re-occur remains the Cleveland Browns v. Detroit Lions, as the teams have faced each other four times, coming in 1952, 1953, 1954, and 1957.
Comments