 Cover of the 1946 Championship Play-Off Program | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 15, 1946 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Stadium | Polo Grounds, New York City | ||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Chicago by 7–10 points | ||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Ronald Gibbs | ||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 58,346 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hall of Famers | |||||||||||||||||||
| Bears: George Halas (owner/coach), Sid Luckman, George McAfee, Ed Sprinkle, Joe Stydahar, Bulldog Turner Giants: Tim Mara (owner/founder), Wellington Mara (administrator), Steve Owen (coach), Ken Strong | |||||||||||||||||||
| Radio in the United States | |||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ABC | ||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Harry Wismer | ||||||||||||||||||
Grounds
The 1946 NFL Championship Game was the 14th annual championship game of the National Football League (NFL), played December 15 at the Polo Grounds in New York City,[1] with a record-breaking attendance of 58,346.[2][3]
The game matched the New York Giants (7–3–1), champions of the Eastern Division, against the Western Division champion Chicago Bears (8–2–1). The Giants had won the regular season game 14–0 at the Polo Grounds seven weeks earlier on October 27,[4] but the Bears were seven to ten point favorites.[1][5][6][7]
This was the fifth and final NFL Championship game played at the Polo Grounds and the fourth of six meetings between the Bears and Giants in the title game.
Tied after three quarters, Chicago won 24–14 for their seventh NFL title,[2][3][8] their fifth victory in eight NFL championship game appearances. The attendance record stood for another nine years, until the 1955 title game in Los Angeles.
- ^ a b Prell, Edward (December 15, 1946). "60,000 to see Bears battle Giants today for N.F.L. title". Chicago Sunday Tribune. p. 1, section 2.
- ^ a b Biederman, Les (December 16, 1946). "Luckman leads Bears to NFL title". Pittsburgh Press. p. 20.
- ^ a b Prell, Edward (December 16, 1946). "Bears win 7th title, 24-14, before 58,346". Chicago Tribune. p. 1, section 3.
- ^ Warren, Harry (October 28, 1946). "Cards win 34-10; Giants whip Bears, 14-0". Chicago Daily Tribune. p. 1, section 2.
- ^ "Bears touchdown favorite over Giants in title game". Milwaukee Sentinel. INS. December 15, 1946. p. 3B.
- ^ Kuechle, Oliver E. (December 15, 1946). "Favor Bears in pro play-off today". Milwaukee Journal. p. 1, sports.
- ^ Biederman, Les (December 15, 1946). "Bears favored to beet Giants for NFL title". Pittsburgh Press. p. 33.
- ^ Kuechle, Oliver E. (December 16, 1946). "Bears defeat Giants, 24 to 14; attempted bribery uncovered". Milwaukee Journal. p. 4, part 2.