Another year adds another Roman numeral to the NFL’s biggest game: the Super Bowl.
This year, that number stands as LVI: three numerals that, added together, result in the latest Super Bowl edition. It’s not quite as intuitive as the Arabic numeral system but, once you understand what each numeral means, it amounts to little more than basic addition (and, in some cases, subtraction).
There’s more to understanding the NFL’s adherence to Roman numerals than just that, however. There’s also the “why” — as in, why did the NFL resort to such a numbering system in the first place? And why does it continue to do so? (The Sporting News, for example, has referred to all Super Bowls by their Arabic numerals since Super Bowl 50 — the one and only such game that did not officially have Roman numeration.)
With that, TSN has you covered on the origin and history of the Super Bowl’s Roman numeral system — and what number this year is.
MORE: How much does a commercial for Super Bowl 56 cost?
What number is the Super Bowl this year?
This year marks Super Bowl LVI, or Super Bowl 56.
If you’re curious how three numerals equal a two-digit number, well, TSN has you covered there, too. Roman numerals feature seven symbols that equate to different numbers. Once you understand their meaning, Super Bowls — and other basic math problems — are much easier to understand:
| Symbol | Number |
| I | 1 |
| V | 5 |
| X | 10 |
| L | 50 |
| C | 100 |
| D | 500 |
| M | 1,000 |
Using the above table, we can simply convert this year’s three numerals — L, V and I — to their numeric meaning (50, 5 and 1, respectively). Add those three numerals and you have 56.
It’s worth mentioning the subtraction aspect of Roman Numerals, which won’t be necessary again until Super Bowl LVIX — or 59 — in February 2025. Roman numeration does not place four of the same numeral in a row. Instead, it subtracts numerals from one another, with a symbol of lesser value being placed ahead of a symbol of greater value.
For example, four is not represented by IIII: It’s represented by IV — “one from five.” The same goes for nine being represented not by VIIII, but by IX: “one from 10.” That’s why Super Bowl 40 was represented as XL — “10 from 50” — instead of XXXX.
To date, the Super Bowl that has used the most Roman numerals is 38: XXXVIII. That number won’t be surpassed again until Super Bowl 88: LXXXVIII.
Roman numerals chart
Why does the Super Bowl use Roman numerals?
Super Bowl V was the first such game to use Roman numerals — a system the NFL put into place to avoid confusion, as a Super Bowl is played in a calendar year following a listed season. (E.g., Super Bowl 2022 would be the final game of the 2021 season).
From the NFL’s media guide:
“The Roman numerals were adopted to clarify any confusion that may occur because the NFL championship game — the Super Bowl — is played in the year following a chronologically recorded season. Numerals I through IV were added later for the first four Super Bowls.”
Other sports avoid this problem by listing both years in which a single season takes place. The NBA and NHL’s current season, for example, is being played in 2021-22. Their championship series — the NBA Finals and Stanley Cup Final — are indicated by the year in which they take place. There’s no confusion, however, because the latter year has already been indicated.
It’s uncertain why the NFL doesn’t simply refer to its Super Bowl logos with Arabic numerals, but that decision has created some fantastic logos over the years — until more recently, that is.
MORE: Super Bowl logo has become ‘corporate, soulless’ like ‘NFL itself’
Why was Super Bowl 50 listed with Arabic numerals?
The NFL in 2014 announced that Super Bowl 50 would be displayed with Arabic numerals as opposed to Roman numerals. It made sense, considering it marked the 50th anniversary of the Super Bowl.
Also, 50 is represented in Roman numerals as “L,” which is commonly equated to “loser” or “loss” in American dialect. Not exactly a letter with which the NFL wants to be associated.
“When we developed the Super Bowl XL logo, that was the first time we looked at the letter L,” NFL vice president of brand and creative Jaime Weston said at the time. “Up until that point, we had only worked with X’s, V’s and I’s. And, at that moment, that’s when we started to wonder: What will happen when we get to 50?”
The league returned to Roman numerals for Super Bowl 51 (LI) and has kept that numeration system in place ever since. No plans are in place to return to Arabic numerals for the Super Bowl — yet.