Why does the Super Bowl use Roman numerals?

Football fans are getting ready for Super Bowl LIX between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 9 in New Orleans, LA but the matchup might be near the bottom of the list of questions casual viewers may have following the AFC Championship Game and NFC Championship Game alike.

How many of us have seen the logo for the Super Bowl and spelled it out phonetically (i.e. "Super Bowl L-I-X")? We've all done it at least once, it's okay to admit it. For those that may not know, the letters are Roman numerals which tell us which edition of the big game is being played.

Here's a quick cheat sheet: "I" means one, "V" means five, "X" means 10 and "L" means 50. So, in this case this year we'll be watching Super Bowl 59. Eventually, we may even live to see Super Bowl C (100).

Why does the NFL use Roman numerals to label each Super Bowl?

It's been almost six decades since the first-ever Super Bowl (1967) but what if I told you the league didn't call it that until 1969? That's right, Super Bowl III was the first time the big game was referred to as we know it today and, in fact, the Roman numerals weren't slapped on until 1971 for the branding of Super Bowl V. The first two games were dubbed the "AFL-NFL World Championship Game" to honor the historic merger of the two biggest leagues in the country which formed the modern NFL.

Kansas City Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt came up with the branding idea after watching his son play with a "super ball" which was a popular toy at the time. He also suggested using Roman numerals in order to help fans avoid confusing the date of the game with which edition was being played. For example, referring to Super Bowl LIX as the 2025 Super Bowl wouldn't necessarily be correct. The game is being played this year but it's capping off the season that began and was mostly played in the latter months of 2024.

Every Super Bowl save one has been accompanied by Roman numerals in the history of the NFL's championship. During the 2015-16 season, the league announced Super Bowl 50 would not be branded with the Roman numeral "L." Why you ask? Well, let's think about it - wins and losses are typically referred to as "Ws" and "Ls" by fans. So, naturally, the league picked up on the fact that "Super Bowl L" would not be received as kindly by the youths who could easily meme it.

Now you have a little bit of sports history trivia at your disposal ahead of the big game. Feel free to show off in front of your sporty friends at that Super Bowl party you might attend.