2009 in football

American football

 * BCS National Championship Game at Orange Bowl (2008 season):
 * The Florida Gators won 24-14 over the Oklahoma Sooners in front of a record crowd of 78,468 to win the BCS National Championship
 * February 1 – Super Bowl XLIII at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa – Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Arizona Cardinals 27–23 to win an NFL-record 6 Super Bowls. Santonio Holmes won the Super Bowl MVP, as he caught the game-winning touchdown with 35 seconds remaining. Also, Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison, returned an interception 100 yards for a touchdown, which is the longest Super Bowl play in NFL history.
 * September 20 – The Dallas Cowboys play their first game in the new Cowboys Stadium against the New York Giants and lose 31–33. The game drew an NFL record regular-season crowd of over 105,000.
 * September 27 – Detroit Lions defeat the Washington Redskins to end a 19-game losing streak dating back to December 2007. This tied the 1942–45 Chicago Cardinals (who suspended independent operations in 1944) and the 1961–62 Oakland Raiders for the second longest such streak after the 1976–77 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
 * October 8 – The United Football League made its debut.
 * November 27 – In the first UFL Championship Game, the Las Vegas Locomotives defeat the previously unbeaten Florida Tuskers 20–17 in overtime.