How Accurate Are The Simpsons' Super Bowl Predictions? (And Why You Should Pay Attention)

After over 30 seasons of "The Simpsons," the series has been notorious for its humor and long-running jokes that have entertained fans for years. But it seems the comedic antics the animated sitcom is known for aren't the only selling points, as it appears to have an alleged knack for picking the team that will emerge victorious, holding the Vince Lombardi trophy in the air at the Super Bowl.

In regards to episodes available, "The Simpsons" have considerably more options than their competitors with an impressive catalog of over 700 chapters, and among the many top-rated options to choose from, there is an assortment of entries that cover a wide range of topics, including different sports. In the past, "The Simpsons" have touched upon the subject of football on numerous occasions (via NFL.com), including an entry in Season 10 called "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday," where an assortment of characters get into some hilarious shenanigans trying to sneak into the big game. While the show has its fair share of gridiron credibility to boast about, many probably wouldn't think the cartoon comedy would be a valuable source in terms of figuring out who would become a Super Bowl Champion. Despite "The Simpsons" not being the biggest expert in the field, they have gotten it eerily right a number of times.

On January 23, 1992, "The Simpsons" aired Season 3, Episode 14 ("Lisa the Greek"), where Lisa Simpson (Yeardley Smith) predicted the Washington Redskins (now the Commanders) would win the Super Bowl against the Buffalo Bills, which they did in the entry and in real life three days later. Then her dialogue was continuously redubbed to keep things fresh for fans, and Lisa indicated that the Cowboys would beat the Bills in '93 and '94, which they ended up doing both times. However, while some are enamored with the show's football fortune-telling ways, other people are not so impressed.

Speaking to Time, statistician Sir David Spiegelhalter opined that the accurate Super Bowl projections of "The Simpsons" were lucky guesses. "These coincidences reflect their creative imagination and luck," he said. But the author of "The Simpsons: An Uncensored, Unauthorized History" has a much more intriguing take on the situation. Jon Ortved told the publication that the people writing the show during the streak were avid sports fans with Harvard educations, saying, "They weren't dumb. And they liked to gamble, following their boss, Sam Simon." 

Ortved thinks because these choices weren't made at random and were the result of a knowledgeable person's Ivy League-level research into something they were passionate about, the precise projections are better referred to as educated guesses. "It would be weird if there wasn't some crossover," he continued.

While their ability to see the future may be up for debate by the experts, it's no secret that the show has freakishly predicted the future before, and it might not hurt for fans to continue watching seasons of "The Simpsons" keeping an eye out for clues as to who could win the big game down the road.