When Super Bowl Wins Aligned with FIFA World Cups

This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.

Fans of major sporting events know both the NFL Super Bowl and FIFA World Cup are among the most-watched championships in the world, yet they run on very different cycles. The Super Bowl is an annual American football title game, while the FIFA World Cup is a quadrennial global soccer tournament. Still, there have been a few notable seasons in which the winners of both championships were the same.

Two Champions, One Year

The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League (NFL), inaugurated in 1967 and held each year in late January or early February to crown a champion from the previous season.

By contrast, the FIFA World Cup, the pinnacle of international soccer, takes place every four years, with national teams from around the globe competing for football’s most prestigious trophy.

Notable Years of Super Bowl + World Cup Alignment

Because the World Cup happens every four years, only a handful of Super Bowls have fallen in the same calendar year as a World Cup. Some examples include:

2002

• Super Bowl XXXVI (2002) – New England Patriots defeated the St. Louis Rams, with Tom Brady earning MVP honors.
• The 2002 FIFA World Cup was Held in South Korea and Japan. Brazil won its fifth World Cup, defeating Germany in the final.

This was a rare occasion where both football legends, the Patriots in American football and Brazil in soccer, claimed top honors in their respective global sports in the same year.

1994

• Super Bowl XXIX (1995 game) – Although the Super Bowl for the 1994 NFL season was played in early 1995, the championship team is often linked with the 1994 season in football discussions.
• 1994 FIFA World Cup – Brazil won the World Cup final at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, USA, defeating Italy on penalties.

How Often Does It Happen

Because the World Cup occurs only once every four years and the Super Bowl every year, exact calendar-year overlaps are limited. For example:

• 1994 and 2002 are widely recognized alignments.
• With the 2026 FIFA World Cup scheduled for June – July 2026 in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and Super Bowl LX in February 2026, another potential alignment is on the horizon, as both sporting spectacles occur within the same calendar year (though in different seasons).

Conclusion

While the NFL Super Bowl and the FIFA World Cup are independent global sporting pillars with very different cycles, occasional calendar year alignments are compelling moments for fans.