NFC North

A historic NFL division known for cold-weather rivalries.

The NFC North is a division of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL), originally formed in 1967 as the Central Division of the Western Conference. It currently comprises the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, and Minnesota Vikings, and is nicknamed the "Black and Blue Division" for its intense rivalries. The division has been dominated historically by the Vikings and Packers, who hold 21 and 17 division titles respectively, with the Bears winning most recently in the 2025 season.

Quick Facts

Formerly: NFC Central (1970, 2001), Western Conference Central Division (1967, 69)
Sport: American football
League: National Football League (NFL)
Conference: National Football Conference (NFC)
Founded: 1967
Teams: 4
Country: United States
Champion: Chicago Bears

Facts from the source article.

History

The NFC North traces its origins to the Western Division of the NFL, established in 1933 alongside the Eastern Division, whose winners met in the NFL Championship Game from 1933 to 1966. In 1967, the Western Conference (renamed from the Western Division) was split into two divisions, with the new Central Division champion facing the Coastal Division winner for the right to play in the championship game. Following the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, the Western Conference became the National Football Conference (NFC), and the Central Division retained its name, now part of a multi-round playoff system including a divisional round and a conference championship round.

The division was renamed the NFC North in 2002. When formed in 1967, the Central Division included the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, and Minnesota Vikings. The Bears and Packers joined the NFL in 1920 and 1921 respectively, the Lions entered in 1930, and the Vikings in 1960; all four had been in the same division or conference from their formation until 1966. As part of the merger, the league reorganized and expanded from 24 to 28 teams.

The Baltimore Colts, Cleveland Browns, and Pittsburgh Steelers moved to the American Football Conference (AFC) with the 10 AFL teams, while the remaining 13 teams formed the NFC. NFC teams could not agree on division alignment, so the final makeup was decided by random drawing from five options by NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle's secretary. In 1976, the Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers entered as expansion teams, with the Buccaneers added to the NFC Central, where they remained until 2001.

In 2002, a league reorganization that included the expansion Houston Texans moved the Buccaneers to the newly formed NFC South, ensuring each of the eight divisions had four teams and standardizing schedule development.

Notable games

NFC North members have rarely met in the playoffs, with most matchups occurring in the Wild Card round. The only conference championship game between two current division members was in 2010, when the Packers beat the Bears 21–14 to advance to Super Bowl XLV. (The Packers and Buccaneers played in the 2020 NFC Championship Game, but the Buccaneers had moved to the NFC South nearly two decades earlier.) Before conferences existed, the Bears and Packers met in the 1941 NFL playoffs, with the Bears winning 33–14 to advance to the 1941 NFL Championship Game.

The Lions have never faced the Bears or Vikings in the playoffs, and the Bears and Vikings have met only once. The Packers have played the Bears three times in the playoffs, and have faced the Vikings, Lions, and Buccaneers twice each (the 2020 game with the Buccaneers occurred after the Buccaneers left the division). The Buccaneers have never played the Bears, Lions, or Vikings in the playoffs. On seven occasions, the last game of the season decided the division champion.

The first such winner-take-all game was in 1981, when the Buccaneers beat the Lions 20–17. In 1993, the Lions beat the Packers in the final game to win the division, though the Packers and Vikings also made the playoffs as Wild Card teams. From 2013 to 2016, the NFC North was decided each year by a winner-take-all final game, all involving the Packers: they beat the Bears in 2013, the Lions in 2014 and 2016, and lost to the Vikings in 2015. Except for 2013, the loser of those games still reached the postseason as a Wild Card team.

Most recently, in 2024, the Lions beat the Vikings in the final game to secure the division title, the first seed in the playoffs, and home field advantage throughout.