ArenaBowl XVII was played on June 22, 2003 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida before a sellout crowd of 20,496. The Tampa Bay Storm earned their AFL record fifth ArenaBowl title, by defeating the Arizona Rattlers, 43–29. The win was just months after the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers won Super Bowl XXXVII, making Tampa Bay the first metropolitan area to simultaneously hold both NFL and AFL championships.
The 2006 Atlanta Falcons season was the franchise's 41st in the National Football League (NFL). The team attempted to improve on their 8–8 record in 2005.
The 2006 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 31st season in the National Football League the 9th playing their home games at Raymond James Stadium, and the 5th under head coach Jon Gruden.
The 2007 Chicago Bears season was the franchise's 88th season in the National Football League. The season officially began on September 9, 2007, against the San Diego Chargers, and concluded on December 30 against the New Orleans Saints. The Bears entered the 2007 season as the National Football Conference Champions and had hopes of returning to the Super Bowl, but instead finished the season with a disappointing 7–9 record, and missing the playoffs for the first time since 2004. The season marked the most recent time that the Bears swept the Green Bay Packers.
Arena Bowl XIII was the 1999 edition of the Arena Football League's championship game. The game was played on August 21, 1999, at the Firebirds' home arena, the Times Union Center. The title game featured the #8 Orlando Predators and the #3 Albany Firebirds. The Predators were coming off their first Arena Bowl title, while the game was the Firebirds' first appearance in 10 seasons.
Arena Bowl '88 was the Arena Football League's second championship game. The game featured the number 2 Detroit Drive (9–3) against the number 1 Chicago Bruisers (10–1–1). With 37 combined points it is the lowest-scoring ArenaBowl in history. Chicago's 13 points are the fewest points by a single team in Arenabowl history.
Arena Bowl '89 was the Arena Football League's third Arena Bowl. The game featured the #2 Pittsburgh Gladiators against the #1 Detroit Drive. Both teams finished their seasons at 3-1, yet the Drive greatly led in points against (84-147).
The 2007 season was the Dallas Cowboys' 48th in the National Football League (NFL), their 19th under the ownership of Jerry Jones, their 36th playing their home games at Texas Stadium, their first season under offensive coordinator Jason Garrett and their first season under head coach Wade Phillips. The Cowboys finished the regular season tied for the best record in the NFC (13–3), and earned a first-round bye for the first time since 1995 and home field advantage throughout the playoffs. However, they lost their first playoff game to the eventual Super Bowl champion New York Giants, a team that they had defeated in their two regular-season matchups, both by ten points or more. With the loss, it extended the Cowboys’ drought of playoff wins to eleven seasons and tied the NFL record of six consecutive playoff games lost. 13 players were named to the Pro Bowl, an NFL record.
The 2007 season was the Arizona Cardinals' 88th in the National Football League, their 20th in Arizona and their first under head coach Ken Whisenhunt. They improved upon their 5–11 record in 2006 after finishing last place in the NFC West, by finishing 8–8, but the failure of the Cardinals to qualify for the Super Bowl marked the 23rd consecutive year in which the Super Bowl did not include the team in whose region the game was being played in; Super Bowl XIV and Super Bowl XIX were the only postseasons with such an occurrence before 2007.
Arena Bowl '90 was the Arena Football League's fourth Arena Bowl. The game featured the #2 Dallas Texans against the #1 Detroit Drive. Both teams finished their seasons at 6-2, yet the Drive led in points for (326-299) and points against (215-308).
ArenaBowl '91 was the Arena Football League's fifth ArenaBowl. The game featured the #2 Tampa Bay Storm (8-2) against the #1 Detroit Drive (9-1). The Storm were in their first season in Tampa, Florida since moving from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and having spent their first four seasons as the Pittsburgh Gladiators, while the Drive were trying to win an unprecedented fourth-straight ArenaBowl title.
ArenaBowl '92 was the Arena Football League's sixth Arena Bowl. The game featured the #2 Detroit Drive (8–2) against the #1 Orlando Predators (9–1). Earlier in the regular season, these two teams met with the Predators winning 50–49 in the "Miracle Minute."
ArenaBowl VIII was the Arena Football League's eighth ArenaBowl. The game featured the #3 Arizona Rattlers (8–4) of the American Conference against the #1 Orlando Predators (11–1) of the National Conference. The Rattlers were making their first ArenaBowl appearance in their three-year history, while the Predators were in their second ArenaBowl in their four years in the league.
ArenaBowl IX was the Arena Football League's ninth ArenaBowl. The game featured the #6 Orlando Predators (7-5) of the National Conference against the #1 Tampa Bay Storm (10-2), also of the National Conference. This would be the very first ArenaBowl to have the "War on I-4" rivalry featured in it. For the Predators, this was their third ArenaBowl appearance in their first five years of existence. For the Storm, this was their fourth overall appearance with a chance to get three titles in five years.
ArenaBowl X was the Arena Football League's tenth ArenaBowl. The game featured the #2 Tampa Bay Storm of the National Conference against the #1 Iowa Barnstormers of the American Conference. Both teams ended their regular seasons at 12-2, yet Iowa had a better conference record. For the Storm, they were hoping to get their fourth championship title in six overall appearances, while the Barnstormers were trying to win their very first league championship game.
ArenaBowl XI was the Arena Football League's eleventh ArenaBowl. The game featured two American Conference teams, the #2 Iowa Barnstormers (11–3) against the #1 Arizona Rattlers (12–2). Iowa was coming from losing ArenaBowl X to the Tampa Bay Storm and were still looking for their first championship title, while Arizona was making its second appearance after winning ArenaBowl VIII against the Orlando Predators three seasons ago. Now, they were trying to acquire their second league title.
ArenaBowl XII was the Arena Football League's twelfth Arena Bowl, which took place August 23, 1998. It pitted the #4 Orlando Predators (9-5) of the National Conference against the #1 Tampa Bay Storm (12-2), also of the National Conference. This was the second and final ArenaBowl to have the "War on I-4" rivalry on the big stage. For the Predators, it was their fourth ArenaBowl appearance in their eight years of existence. This year, they were under the command of first-year head coach Jay Gruden. For the Storm, this was their eighth overall appearance as they were going for their fifth ArenaBowl title in eight seasons. Not only did they face their arch-rivals from Orlando, but they also had face their former star player in Jay Gruden.
The 2002 season was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 27th in the National Football League (NFL). It was one of the most successful seasons in franchise history, ending with a victory in Super Bowl XXXVII.
The 2008 Chicago Bears season was the franchise's 89th regular season in the National Football League. They finished the 2008 season with a 9–7 record, improving upon their 7–9 record from the 2007 season. The Bears failed to qualify for the playoffs for the second consecutive season.
The 2011 Green Bay Packers season was the franchise's 93rd season overall and their 91st in the National Football League (NFL), and the sixth under head coach Mike McCarthy. The team not only improved on their 10–6 record from a season earlier, they became just the sixth team in NFL history to win 15 games during the regular season. As of 2022, the 15–1 record stands as the best in team history, as well as the best record for a defending Super Bowl champion. The Packers won their first 13 games of the season to extend their winning streak from the previous season to 19, the second-longest in NFL history behind the 21-game winning streak of the New England Patriots in 2003 and 2004, and also tied the record for the best start to a season in NFC history that the New Orleans Saints had set in 2009. The only loss for the Packers during the regular season was a Week 15 defeat in Arrowhead Stadium against the Kansas City Chiefs. They also became the first NFC North team to go undefeated in the division since the 1987 Chicago Bears.
