Super Bowl Betting: History of Super Bowl MVP Winners

Sports fans have a variety of wagers to choose from when betting on the Super Bowl. In addition to standard gambling markets like the moneyline, spread, Over/Under and prop bets, bettors can also wager on the Super Bowl MVP winner.

Odds for the Super Bowl MVP are posted after the game’s matchup is set.

So far, 58 MVP awards have been given out in 57 Super Bowls. Green Bay Packers quarterback Bart Starr won the first Super Bowl MVP in 1967. He won the award the following year in Super Bowl II.

Terry Bradshaw (1979 and 1980) is the only other player to win back-to-back Super Bowl MVP awards.

The award has a rich history that is worth considering before placing a wager.

Super Bowl MVP Trophy

Since Super Bowl XXV, the game’s MVP trophy has been named after Pete Rozelle, who served as NFL commissioner for 30 years from 1960 to 1989. He oversaw the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 and helped grow the NFL into one of the world’s most popular sports leagues.

SPORT Magazine presented the MVP award through 1989, and the NFL has presented it since.

The MVP only receives a trophy, as no other prize is attached to the award. Winners received a car up until 2015.

Super Bowl MVP Voting Process

MVP is awarded by a mix of fans and media members. 

A panel of 16 football writers and broadcasters accounts for 80% of the vote, while fans contribute the 20%. This process is different from other major sports awards, most of which have no fan input.

Voters cast their ballots immediately after the game ends. They are instructed to choose one player from the winning team. They cannot vote for multiple players or an entire unit, like a team’s defense.

More often than not, the Super Bowl MVP tends to be the quarterback from the winning team. That’s been true in 32 of 57 Super Bowls so far.

Only once has the MVP come from the losing team—in Super Bowl V when Dallas Cowboys linebacker Chuck Howley won despite the Cowboys losing to the Baltimore Colts 16-13. He became the first non-quarterback MVP after recording two interceptions and a forced fumble.

There has been one instance of multiple players winning Super Bowl MVP in the same game. That happened in Super Bowl XII when Dallas teammates Harvey Martin and Randy White shared the award.

Most Super Bowl MVPs by Position

Quarterbacks have won Super Bowl MVP more than all other positions combined, accounting for 32 trophies (55.2%) compared to 26 at other positions. This trend isn’t as extreme as the regular-season MVP award, which has gone to a quarterback 47 out of 68 times (69.1%).

Wide receivers have won eight times, and running backs have won seven. Defensive players have won 10 times, while a special teams player has won just once—Green Bay Packers kick/punt returner Desmond Howard in Super Bowl XXXI.

A defensive player has won the award in only two of the last 20 Super Bowls.

The last non-quarterback to win was Los Angeles Rams WR Cooper Kupp in Super Bowl LVI.

Accordingly, fans interested in a wager on MVP should determine which team they think will win the Super Bowl, then wager on that team’s QB.

That bet has paid off in five of the last seven Super Bowls.

The quarterback of the team that’s favored to win the game will likely have the shortest odds to win Super Bowl MVP at online sportsbooks. Odds are posted after the Super Bowl matchup is determined.

Which Player Has Won The Most Super Bowl MVPs?

Six players have won multiple Super Bowl MVP awards—all quarterbacks. 

Tom Brady holds the record with five, followed by Joe Montana with three. Bart Starr, Terry Bradshaw, Eli Manning and Patrick Mahomes have all won twice.

Mahomes is the only active player with multiple Super Bowl MVPs. He’s also the award’s most recent recipient after claiming it in Super Bowl LVII.

While the regular-season MVP and Super Bowl MVP are separate, sometimes the former can be a precursor to the latter. There have been 11 seasons a player won both, most recently Mahomes in 2022.

Even though the Cowboys do not have the most Super Bowl championships, they have won the most Super Bowl MVP awards with seven. They had one year where two of their players won the award and another year where they had the MVP despite losing the game.

The New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers are tied for second with six Super Bowl MVPs apiece, followed by the San Francisco 49ers with five.

Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images