How to read a Super Bowl squares result
The table above lists the winner first and the loser second. Scores are cumulative at the end of each period, not the points scored in that quarter. A final score of 27-24 is written as 27-24 and its winning pair is 7-4: the winner's last digit followed by the loser's last digit. The same rule applies at halftime and after Q3. If a game went to overtime, the final column uses the score after the extra period and the row is marked OT. Super Bowl LI and LVIII are the two overtime games in the sample.
Winning digits by period
Single-digit frequencies are the building blocks of every pair. The tables below show how often each last digit appeared for the winner and the loser at the end of each period across 60 games. Percentages are the share of the 60 games; because every game has one winner digit and one loser digit, each column adds to 100 percent, subject to rounding.
End of Q1 (n=60)
| Digit | Winner games | Winner share | Loser games | Loser share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 20 | 33.33% | 36 | 60.00% |
| 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 2 | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 3 | 13 | 21.67% | 14 | 23.33% |
| 4 | 5 | 8.33% | 2 | 3.33% |
| 5 | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 6 | 2 | 3.33% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 7 | 17 | 28.33% | 8 | 13.33% |
| 8 | 1 | 1.67% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 9 | 2 | 3.33% | 0 | 0.00% |
Halftime (n=60)
| Digit | Winner games | Winner share | Loser games | Loser share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 8 | 13.33% | 28 | 46.67% |
| 1 | 5 | 8.33% | 1 | 1.67% |
| 2 | 3 | 5.00% | 2 | 3.33% |
| 3 | 10 | 16.67% | 12 | 20.00% |
| 4 | 8 | 13.33% | 6 | 10.00% |
| 5 | 1 | 1.67% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 6 | 7 | 11.67% | 4 | 6.67% |
| 7 | 11 | 18.33% | 7 | 11.67% |
| 8 | 3 | 5.00% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 9 | 4 | 6.67% | 0 | 0.00% |
End of Q3 (n=60)
| Digit | Winner games | Winner share | Loser games | Loser share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 6 | 10.00% | 17 | 28.33% |
| 1 | 7 | 11.67% | 1 | 1.67% |
| 2 | 3 | 5.00% | 1 | 1.67% |
| 3 | 6 | 10.00% | 9 | 15.00% |
| 4 | 12 | 20.00% | 2 | 3.33% |
| 5 | 4 | 6.67% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 6 | 9 | 15.00% | 5 | 8.33% |
| 7 | 6 | 10.00% | 18 | 30.00% |
| 8 | 3 | 5.00% | 3 | 5.00% |
| 9 | 4 | 6.67% | 4 | 6.67% |
Final (n=60)
| Digit | Winner games | Winner share | Loser games | Loser share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 5 | 8.33% | 11 | 18.33% |
| 1 | 10 | 16.67% | 6 | 10.00% |
| 2 | 4 | 6.67% | 2 | 3.33% |
| 3 | 6 | 10.00% | 7 | 11.67% |
| 4 | 9 | 15.00% | 6 | 10.00% |
| 5 | 5 | 8.33% | 2 | 3.33% |
| 6 | 5 | 8.33% | 5 | 8.33% |
| 7 | 7 | 11.67% | 13 | 21.67% |
| 8 | 5 | 8.33% | 2 | 3.33% |
| 9 | 4 | 6.67% | 6 | 10.00% |
The first quarter is a different game
The first quarter is the most concentrated period in Super Bowl history. A 0-0 score won 15 of 60 first quarters, a 25.00 percent share, and the 0 digit appeared for the losing team in 36 of 60 games, 60.00 percent. The 3-0 and 7-0 pairs each won eight first quarters, 13.33 percent. The pattern is familiar from the regular-season data: early scores are low, and a scoreless quarter is common. By the final, the distribution is much flatter, and no pair has won more than three of the 60 finals.
Top five first-quarter pairs
| Rank | Winning pair | Games | Share | Super Bowls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0–0 | 15 | 25.00% | III, IX, XI, XII, XXII, XXVI, XXX, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIV, XLIX, L, LI, LIII, LVIII |
| 2 | 3–0 | 8 | 13.33% | II, IV, VI, XXIII, XXXIV, XLII, XLIII, LX |
| 3 | 7–0 | 8 | 13.33% | I, VII, XVI, XVIII, XIX, XXI, XXXV, LIX |
| 4 | 7–3 | 5 | 8.33% | XXXIII, XLVII, LIV, LV, LVI |
| 5 | 3–3 | 4 | 6.67% | XX, XXIV, XXV, XXXVII |
Final pairs that repeat
Only two final pairs have won three Super Bowls: 1-7 (X, XLIV, XLVI) and 4-7 (VII, VIII, XXXV). Each is a 5.00 percent share of the 60-game sample. The 7-0 pair won two finals (XII, XV), as did several other pairs; the table above lists the top 10. The important caveat is sample size: 60 games is small, and a pair that has won twice is not twice as likely to win the next one. The history is a record, not a forecast.
Overtime finals
Two Super Bowls have gone to overtime, and both changed the final digit pair. In Super Bowl LI, the Patriots beat the Falcons 34-28 after a 28-28 tie at the end of regulation; the final digits were 4-8, while the end-of-regulation digits were 8-8. In Super Bowl LVIII, the Chiefs beat the 49ers 25-22 after a 19-19 tie; the final digits were 5-2, while the end-of-regulation digits were 9-9. A pool that uses the end of regulation for the final prize would have paid a different square in both games. State the overtime rule before kickoff.
What the history does and does not tell you
Sixty games is enough to see patterns but not enough to predict a single board. The NFL's scoring rules, offensive styles and playoff format have changed since 1967, and the early Super Bowls were played in a different era. The frequencies here describe what happened, not what will happen. In a fair pool, the digits are drawn after the board fills, so every square starts with the same chance regardless of history. Use the results to explain why certain squares have a reputation, to price an auction board where the digits are visible, or to settle a trivia question. Do not use them to claim a square is due.
Data and method
Source: 60 Super Bowls, I through LX, from each game's English Wikipedia article. The infobox quarter table supplied the quarter scores, and the article's scoring-summary table supplied an independent cumulative-score check after the last scoring play of each period. All 60 games matched on Q1, halftime, Q3 and final after overtime rows were handled. Scores are cumulative; digits are the last digit of the cumulative score; the winner is listed first. Historical team names are preserved. The designated home and away teams are not recorded because the Wikipedia infobox does not label them consistently. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the NFL.