For its first nine seasons, 1960 through 1968, the American Football League determined its champion via a single playoff game between the winners of its two divisions (although ties in the standings in 1963 (Eastern) and 1968 (Western) required a tiebreaker divisional playoff game the week before).
In 1969, the tenth and final year of the independent ten-team AFL, a four-team playoff was held, with the second-place teams in each division traveling to play the winner of the other division in what were called the "Interdivisional" playoffs. These playoffs were not, and are not considered to have been, "wildcard" playoffs since the runners-up in both divisions qualified, rather than the two best non-division winners. (Had the 1969 playoffs been true wildcard playoffs, the Western's third-place team, San Diego (8–6–0), would have qualified while the Eastern's runner-up, Houston (6–6–2), would not have.) The 1969 AFL playoffs were only the second time a U.S. major professional football league allowed teams other than the first-place teams (including ties) to compete in post-season playoffs. (The first was the seven-team All-America Football Conference's 1949 four-team playoff.)
Before the first Super Bowl, in the 1966 season, the AFL went to great lengths to avoid scheduling its playoff games at the same time as the NFL's. In 1960, the NFL's game was held on Monday, December 26; the AFL had that week off, and played its title contest on Sunday, January 1, as the college bowl games were played on Monday. In 1961 and 1962, the AFL played its championship game during the off-week between the end of the NFL's regular season and its title game (thus resulting in the AFL holding championship games on December 24, 1961, and December 23, 1962, a week before the NFL's games of December 31, 1961, and December 30, 1962). In 1963, the AFL held its Eastern Division tiebreaker playoff on Saturday, December 28, 1963, thereby avoiding the NFL championship game that Sunday (the AFL championship game was held on January 5). In 1964, pro football had a championship weekend, with the AFL's title game held on Saturday, December 26, and the NFL championship on Sunday. For 1965, the AFL tried to return to the practice of playing its game on a Sunday during the off-week between the NFL playoff, slating its championship contest for December 26, while the NFL's game was not held until January 2, 1966; the Colts and Packers required a Western Conference tiebreaker on December 26—and when that game went to overtime, it shrank the TV audience for the Bills - Chargers title game in San Diego. Even in 1966, the AFL originally scheduled its championship game for the off-week, planning to hold its playoff on Monday, December 26, six days before the NFL title game on January 1.
In 1966, the leagues agreed to hold championship doubleheaders for the next four years: both title games would take place on the same day but at different times so television audiences could watch both. These took place on January 1, 1967; December 31, 1967; December 29, 1968; and January 4, 1970.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame and the National Football League include AFL playoffs in their statistics for the NFL playoffs.
| Eastern Division | Western Division | Super Bowl Appearance | Super Bowl Victory |
| Season | Date | Winning team | Score | Losing team | MVP | Venue | City | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Houston Oilers | Los Angeles Chargers | Billy Cannon | 32,183 | |||||
| 1961 | Houston Oilers (2) | San Diego Chargers | Billy Cannon | 29,556 | |||||
| 1962 | Dallas Texans | Houston Oilers | Jack Spikes | 37,981 | |||||
| 1963 | San Diego Chargers | Boston Patriots | Keith Lincoln | 30,127 | |||||
| 1964 | Buffalo Bills | San Diego Chargers | Jack Kemp | 40,242 | |||||
| 1965 | Buffalo Bills (2) | San Diego Chargers | Jack Kemp | 30,361 | |||||
| 1966 | Kansas City Chiefs (2) | Buffalo Bills | Len Dawson | 42,080 | |||||
| 1967 | Oakland Raiders | Houston Oilers | Daryle Lamonica | 53,330 | |||||
| 1968 | New York Jets | Oakland Raiders | Joe Namath | 62,627 | |||||
| 1969 | Kansas City Chiefs (3) | Oakland Raiders | Otis Taylor | 53,564 |
See main article: 1960 American Football League Championship Game.
See main article: 1961 American Football League Championship Game.
See main article: 1962 American Football League Championship Game.
A tie in the Eastern Division standings necessitated an Eastern Division playoff game
See main article: 1963 American Football League Championship Game.
The Chargers championship win is noted for being the only and most recent major sports championship won for the city of San Diego. No other city with at least two major professional sports teams has a championship drought as long, as of 2024 (61 years). This is also the only time that the Chargers have beaten the Patriots in a postseason game.
See main article: 1964 American Football League Championship Game.
Mike Stratton's hit on San Diego Chargers running back Keith Lincoln set the stage for the Buffalo Bills and their first AFL championship.
See main article: 1965 American Football League Championship Game.
This was the last AFL Championship Game before the Super Bowl era began the following season and the last time a final pro football championship game was played in December. It was also the most recent championship won by a Buffalo-based major professional sports team.
See main article: 1966 American Football League Championship Game.
Kansas City lost Super Bowl I to the NFL champion Green Bay Packers.
See main article: 1967 American Football League Championship Game.
Oakland lost Super Bowl II to the NFL champion Green Bay Packers.
See main article: 1968 American Football League playoffs.
A tie in the Western Division standings necessitated a Western Division playoff game
See main article: 1968 American Football League Championship Game.
The Jets went on to win Super Bowl III to become the first AFL Super Bowl champion.
See main article: 1969 American Football League playoffs.
See main article: 1969 American Football League Championship Game.
This was the final AFL Championship Game, as well as the final game played between two AFL teams before the merger with the National Football League. The Chiefs won Super Bowl IV as the last AFL champion.
| Symbol | Description |
|---|---|
| Year | Each year is linked to an article about that particular AFL season |
| Winner | Denotes number of times the player won the award |
| Player elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame | |
| Team | Denotes number of times the team won the award |
| Position | Denotes number of times the position has the award |
| Year | Game | Winner | Team | Position | College | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 1960 | Billy Cannon | Houston Oilers | HB | LSU | |
| 1961 | 1961 | Billy Cannon | HB | LSU | ||
| 1962 | 1962 | Jack Spikes | Dallas Texans | HB | TCU | |
| 1963 | 1963 | Keith Lincoln | San Diego Chargers | HB | Washington State | |
| 1964 | 1964 | Jack Kemp | Buffalo Bills | QB | Occidental | |
| 1965 | 1965 | Jack Kemp | QB | Occidental | ||
| 1966 | 1966 | Len Dawson | QB | Purdue | ||
| 1967 | 1967 | Daryle Lamonica | Oakland Raiders | QB | Notre Dame | |
| 1968 | 1968 | Joe Namath | New York Jets | QB | Alabama | |
| 1969 | 1969 | Otis Taylor | WR | Prairie View A&M |
| Num | Team | W | L | Pct | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Los Angeles/San Diego Chargers | 1 | 4 | ||
| 4 | Houston Oilers | 2 | 2 | ||
| 3 | Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs | 3 | 0 | ||
| 3 | Buffalo Bills | 2 | 1 | ||
| 3 | Oakland Raiders | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1 | New York Jets | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1 | Boston Patriots | 0 | 1 |
