NFL Teams Map of the USA
Click or tap the map to enlarge it.
This map of the United States marks the home cities of the 32 teams of the National Football League. It shows at a glance how professional football is spread across the country, with clusters in the Northeast, Great Lakes and Texas and fewer teams in the Mountain West.
The NFL was founded in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association and took its present name in 1922. Its current format of 32 teams dates from 2002, when the Houston Texans joined.
Conferences, divisions and geography
The league is split into the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC), each with four divisions of four teams, named East, North, South and West. The divisions are loosely geographic, so teams that share a division usually sit close to one another on the map, though there are exceptions such as the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East.
Small markets can also appear on the map. The Green Bay Packers, from a city of about 100,000 people in Wisconsin, are the only publicly owned franchise in the league.
Maps age quickly
Team locations change. The Rams returned to Los Angeles in 2016, the Chargers followed in 2017, and the Raiders moved from Oakland to Las Vegas in 2020. A map should always be read with its publication date in mind, and you should check the league's current team list for the latest information.
Who decides where a team plays
NFL teams are privately owned franchises, and a team can relocate only with the approval of three-quarters of the owners. The map also shows how names and places can differ: the New York Giants and Jets both play at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and several teams are named for a state or region, not a city. The league was formed from several earlier competitions. The first Super Bowl was played in January 1967, and the NFL and the rival American Football League merged in 1970.
Key facts
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Teams | 32 |
| Conferences | AFC and NFC |
| Divisions | Eight, of four teams each |
| League founded | 1920 (renamed NFL in 1922) |
| Only publicly owned team | Green Bay Packers |
Questions about this map
How many NFL teams are there?
Thirty-two.
Why are some teams named after states?
Several teams, such as the New England Patriots and Minnesota Vikings, represent a region rather than a single city.
Is the map current?
It shows team homes as of its creation; check current sources for relocations.
