One of original teams of the American National Football League, the New York Giants was founded in 1925 by Tim Mara. The Giants belong to the NFL’s Eastern Division; of the 5 teams that joined the NFL in 1925, they are the only one that still exists. The Giants have amassed four NFL Championships and two Super Bowls to date; the team is headquartered, trains and plays in its Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

In 1934, they defeated the Chicago Bears 30-13 at the Polo Grounds’ icy field in a game that became known as the Sneakers Game because instead of wearing regular football shoes the Giants wore sneakers in the latter part of the game to counter act the slippery ice on the field.

The Giants added their second NFL Championship four years later, beating the Green Bay Packers, 23-17, in front of over 48,000 fans at the Polo Grounds.

Their 3^rd NFL Championship came in 1956 against the Chicago Bears, 47-7; the Giants again wore sneakers as they had 22 years earlier.

The Giants lost against the Baltimore Colts, 23-17, in the 1958 NFL Championship; a game that became known as The Greatest Game Ever Played – the first NFL game broadcast on national TV, and first to go into overtime in NFL history.

In the early 1960’s, Quarterback YA Tittle led the Giants to three consecutive Eastern Division titles from 1961-1963. However, from 1964 the legendary Giants suffered an 18-season playoff drought, establishing a league worst record of 1-12-1 in 1966.

They acquired Fran Tarkenton in 1967 to improve their game; finishing 7-7 in the 1967-1968 seasons and 6-8 in 1968 – the same year that wide receiver Homer Jones made the Pro Bowl and the last year until 2004 that a Giants receiver was selected for the Pro Bowl until 2004.

In 1970, the Giants’ ended the season with a 9-4 record but lost against the Rams for the East Division title, 31-3. They dropped to 4-10 but went up 8-6 in 1972.

Having moved to their new, dedicated football stadium, Giants Stadium, in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the fans anticipated a better performance; however, the team still continued to play below par in 1976 and 1977.

The Giants started 1978 season 5-6 and played the Eagles at home. A game they lost with humiliation; leading 17-12 with less than 30 seconds left, Giants quarterback Joe Pisarcik fumbled a pass to Larry Csonka resulting to a miraculous 19-17 Eagles victory.

In 1979, led by quarterback Phil Simms, the Giants continued to struggle and ended the season 6-10 and 4-12 in 1980.

They drafted Lawrence Taylor in 1981, and together with Harry Carson and Brad Van Pelt, they raised the Giants linebacker corps into one of the NFL's best. They began the season 5-3 and clinched their first playoff berth since 1963 – defeating the Eagles on the road 27-21 before bowing down to the 49ers, 38-24.

They recovered in 1984 season, made the playoffs as a wild card by beating the Rams 16-13 before losing to the eventual Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers, 21-10.

In 1985, the Giants made the playoffs again as a wild card winning their third straight first round wild card playoff game; however they were no match for the Chicago Bears.

The Giants entered the 1986 season as one of the Super Bowl favorites. The Giants won their first divisional title in 23 years against the 49ers; shut out the Redskins 17-0 in the NFC Championship and in Super Bowl XXI, trailing 10-9 at halftime, the Giants overcame the Broncos 39-20.

These 1986 Giants set the tradition of dousing the head coach with a cooler of Gatorade at the end of a victorious game which became a big hit with fans. 1987, however, would be a lost season for the Giants.

The Giants’ 1990 season is one of the most satisfying, magical and emotional in their history. Their win against Vikings was overshadowed by defeat at the hands of the Buffalo Bills, 13-17; their Super Bowl dream seemed impossible. They needed to beat the Cardinals and Patriots, which they did and secured a playoff bye as the NFC's second seed.

The Giants trounced the Bears, 31-3, in the divisional playoff and defeated the 49ers, 15-13, to set up a Super Bowl rematch against the Bills. In Super Bowl XXV, both teams exchanged possessions before the Bills began one final push for the win, to set up what would be a game-winning 47 yard field goal by Scott Norwood. However, Norwood's attempt went wide, and the Giants won their second Super Bowl, 20-19.

The 1990 season and Super Bowl win marked the end of an era for the Giants. Tim Mara sold his 50% interest in the team to Preston Robert Tisch for $500 million, the first time the Giants had not been wholly owned and controlled by the Mara family.

In the 1991 season, it became clear that the team's core players had aged, and the new players are not up to the standards the Giants had come to expect. The team’s decline continued into the following years, culminating in 1995 with a 5-11 record, their worst since 1983. In 1996, the Giants endured another bad season, finishing 6-10. In 1998 the Giants finished at 8-8.

In 1999, strong individual performances brought the team to 7-6, on the verge of a playoff berth only to lose their final three games.

The Giants' big draft acquisition in 2000 was running back Ron Dayne, who together with Tiki Barber's speed and pass-catching ability earned them the moniker Thunder and Lightning and was a key to their performance, earning a bye as the NFC's top seed. Winning against the

the Eagles, 20-10, and dominating the Vikings, 41-0, for the conference championship; however, they lost against the Ravens in Super Bowl XXXV, 7-34, in one of the most lopsided Super Bowl game.

Despite their success, the Giants finished 7-9 in 2001, out of the playoffs for the third time in four seasons. In 2002, the Giants started at 6-6 but won their last 4 games to finish 10-6, securing a first-round playoff against the NFC West champion 49ers. They dominated the 49ers and had a comfortable 38-14 lead with 4 minutes left in the 3rd quarter. The 49ers rallied ferociously, scoring a field goal and three touchdowns for a 39-38 victory.

The Giants started the 2003 season 4-4, lost their final 8 games, including 7 consecutive games in which they failed to score more than 13 points, to finish 4-12.

The Giants started 2005 winning their first two games, defeating the Arizona Cardinals and New Orleans Saints. They clinched a wild card berth when the Vikings fell to the Ravens and went on to take the NFC East title against the Raiders, their first since 2000 but lost against the Carolina Panthers in their NFC Wild Card game, 0-23.