The Pittsburgh Steelers compete in the National Football League as a member club of the American Football Conference North division. Founded in 1933, the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC; seven franchises in the National Football Conference have longer tenures in the NFL. The team struggled to be competitive in its early history, posting winning records in just 8 of its first 39 seasons. Since the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, however, it has appeared in eight Super Bowls and one of only two teams, along with the New England Patriots have won the Super Bowl six times. The six championships place the Steelers fourth in the league in terms of total championships, trailing only the Green Bay Packers, the Chicago Bears and the New York Giants. The club's 15 AFC Championship Game appearances are second all-time, behind the Patriots. In addition, they have hosted the second-most conference championship games than any franchise in either conference, and are tied for second with the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos with eight Super Bowl appearances; the Patriots currently hold the record of eleven appearances, as of 2019. From to the franchise became the first NFL franchise to win four Super Bowl titles in six seasons, a feat which is yet to be matched. The 2005 team was the first sixth-seeded team to advance to a conference championship game since the playoff field was expanded to 12 teams in ; the same team also became the first sixth-seed to win the Super Bowl. The Steelers are 6–2 in Super Bowls, winning Super Bowl IX, Super Bowl X, Super Bowl XIII, Super Bowl XIV, Super Bowl XL, Super Bowl XLIII and losing Super Bowl XXX and Super Bowl XLV. As of the start of the 2018 season, the Steelers franchise are second all-time in playoff appearances, with 31, which is the most among active AFC franchises, as well as the most since the official start of the NFL-AFL merger in 1970. The Giants, Cowboys, and Packers are all tied for first all-time in playoff appearances, with 32 each.
