---
slug: "arizona-cardinals"
title: Arizona Cardinals
depth_tier: program
side: UNIVERSAL
category: Teams
source_id: "NFL-0029"
created: 2026-05-12
updated: 2026-05-13
canonical: https://learningfootball.xyz/programs/arizona-cardinals
aliases:
  - Arizona Cardinals
  - Cardinals football
  - the Cards
  - Chicago Cardinals
sameAs:
  - "https://www.espn.com/nfl/team/_/name/ari/arizona-cardinals"
  - Q224164
  - "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arizona_Cardinals"
  - "https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/crd/index.htm"
---
# Arizona Cardinals

## Short Definition

NFC West NFL franchise founded in 1898—the oldest franchise in professional football, with a journey from Chicago to Arizona across more than a century.

## Definition

The Arizona Cardinals are an NFL franchise in the NFC West division, playing home games at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Founded in 1898 in Chicago—predating the NFL itself—the Cardinals are the oldest continuously operating professional football franchise in American history. The team moved from Chicago to St. Louis in 1960, then to Arizona in 1988, completing one of the longer geographic journeys in professional sports.

The franchise's championship history belongs entirely to the pre-Super Bowl era. The 1947 NFL championship is the last time the Cardinals won a title, meaning the franchise has gone over seven decades without a championship—the longest active drought among franchises with pre-Super Bowl era titles. The move to Arizona, where the Cardinals became the state's first major professional team, began a new chapter in a market with limited previous professional sports infrastructure.

Super Bowl XLIII in 2009—a 27-23 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers—produced the franchise's closest modern approach to a championship. Kurt Warner's resurrection as a starting quarterback after years away from the game, and the Cardinals' dramatic playoff run, created one of the Super Bowl era's most unexpected championship game appearances.

The franchise's identity in Arizona has evolved with the state's population growth, building a fanbase in a market that has become one of the Sun Belt's major NFL cities. State Farm Stadium—notable as one of the few NFL facilities with a retractable natural grass field that slides in and out of the structure—is one of professional football's more distinctive venues.

## Example

"Founded in 1898. The NFL didn't exist for another 22 years. The Cardinals are older than professional football itself—the longest-running franchise in the sport's history."

## Common Confusion

The Cardinals' 1898 founding predates the NFL itself—the franchise traces its roots to a Chicago athletic club team, making it the oldest continuously operating professional football franchise in the country. The NFL wasn't formally organized until 1920. The Cardinals' championship history comes from the pre-Super Bowl era, with their last title in 1947.

## Related

- super-bowl-sunday
- lombardi-trophy
- nfl-films
- hall-of-fame
- draft-night

---
Source: https://learningfootball.xyz/programs/arizona-cardinals