The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. They are currently members of the North Division of the National Football Conference (NFC) in the National Football League (NFL) and are the third-oldest franchise in the NFL.

The Packers are the last vestige of "small town teams" that were once common in the NFL during the 1920s and 1930s. Founded in 1919 by Earl "Curly" Lambeau (thus the name Lambeau Field in which the team presently plays) and George Whitney Calhoun, the Green Bay Packers can trace their lineage to other semi-professional teams in Green Bay dating back to 1896. In 1919 and 1920 the Packers competed as a semi-professional football team against clubs from around Wisconsin and the Midwest. They joined the American Professional Football Association (APFA) in 1921, the forerunner to what is known today as the National Football League (NFL).

The Green Bay Packers have won twelve league championships (more than any other team in the NFL) including nine NFL Championships prior to the Super Bowl era and three Super Bowl victories in 1967 (Super Bowl I), 1968 (Super Bowl II) and 1997 (Super Bowl XXXI). The team has a fierce rivalry with the Chicago Bears, whom they have played in over 170 games. The Packers also share a historic rivalry with the Minnesota Vikings, who currently reside in the NFC North along with the Packers, and the Dallas Cowboys who have historically been known as the Packers largest playoff rivals after the Packers defeated them in the famous Ice Bowl.

The Packers are currently the only non-profit, community-owned major league professional sports team in the United States. Beginning with the 1992 season, the Packers had 13 non-losing seasons in a row (their worst record being 8–8 in 1999), two Super Bowl appearances, and one Super Bowl win (Super Bowl XXXI). The Packers' 13 consecutive non-losing seasons was an active NFL record until the team finally suffered a losing campaign in their 2005 season. They returned to have an 8–8 season in 2006 and a 13–3 regular season in 2007, both under new head coach Mike McCarthy.

Franchise history

for: History of the Green Bay Packers

Founding

On August 20, 1920, the Packers became a franchise in the new national pro football league that had been formed the previous year. Financial troubles plagued the team and the franchise was lost the same year, although Lambeau found new backers the next year and regained the franchise. The financial backers, known as the "Hungry Five," formed the Green Bay Football Corporation.

Championships

The Packers have 12 league championships, the most in the NFL. This includes three Super Bowls (One of these games decided the NFL champion, and the first two date to the era when the AFL and NFL were still two separate leagues). The Packers are also the only team to win three straight NFL titles, which they did twice (1929–1931 and 1965–67).