By the numbers
Updated
Independent desk. Figures are traced to named sources and corrections are logged — see the editorial policy.
The length of a season is a product of how hard each sport is on the body, and how many dates an arena or stadium can fill.
The regular-season schedule of each major league is a fixed number, and the number tells a good deal about the sport.
The numbers
- NFL: 17 games over 18 weeks, since 2021, with one bye week per team. Before 2021 the schedule was 16 games over 17 weeks.
- NBA: 82 games, 41 at home and 41 away.
- NHL: 82 games, split evenly between home and away.
- MLB: 162 games, over about six months.
Why football plays so few
American football involves collisions on most plays, and a player needs about a week to recover. A schedule with a game every seven days is the practical limit, and the league has changed the number of games very rarely.
Why baseball plays so many
A baseball game involves little contact, and a team can play almost every day. A 162-game schedule means that a single loss matters little, and a team that wins 100 games has had an exceptional season. In the NFL a team that wins 13 of 17 is similarly dominant.
The playoffs
Each league then trims the field. The playoffs begin after the regular season, and the number of teams that qualify varies: the NFL sends 14 of 32 teams, the NHL sends 16 of 32 and MLB sends 12 of 30. The NBA's bracket has 16 teams, reached after a play-in tournament that involves 20.