It took more than four quarters, but the Minnesota Vikings stunned the New Orleans Saints with a 26-20 wild-card play-off victory on Sunday.

Russell Wilson is understood to have become the highest-paid player in NFL history after signing a new four-year contract with the Seattle Seahawks.

The Los Angeles Dodgers set a record for home runs on the opening day of a Major League Baseball season with eight in the 12-5 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The aftermath of last weekend’s Super Bowl has been dominated by quarterback Tom Brady’s sixth title and the defensive masterclass planned by New England Patriots coach, Bill Belichick.

Seattle Seahawks star Michael Bennett has claimed police threatened to shoot him last month in Las Vegas for "being a black man in the wrong place at the wrong time".

The jersey worn by New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady in last month's Super Bowl has been recovered after apparently being stolen, the NFL has said in a statement.

There will be a familiar feel to the NFL playoffs next weekend: Every divisional-round game will be a rematch from the regular season, the first time that’s happened in six years.

Colorado Rapids will face the Seattle Sounders in the Western Conference final.

The Carolina Panthers withstood a furious second half comeback from the Seattle Seahawks last night to win 31-24 and set up a National Football Conference championship showdown against the Arizona Cardinals.

Quarterback Cam Newton threw three touchdown passes and his Carolina Panthers pummelled the Atlanta Falcons 38-0 on Sunday to earn an NFL playoff first-round bye.

The New England Patriots stretched their NFL season-opening win streak to nine games as Stephen Gostkowski’s field goal with one second left lifted them to a 27-26 win over the New York Giants.

The highlights, talking points and gaffes from the football weekend

Aaron Rodgers threw for two touchdowns to lead the Green Bay Packers to a 27-17 victory in an NFL grudge match against the Seattle Seahawks.

The two Irishmen who claimed to have sneaked into the Super Bowl have admitted that their powers only go so far, and have paid for their flights home.

Quarterback Tom Brady made Super Bowl history as the New England Patriots toppled the defending champion Seattle Seahawks in Arizona to claim their fourth title.

If the Vegas oddsmakers are to be believed, there is no separating New England and Seattle.

The Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots could produce one of the greatest Super Bowls of all time tomorrow night but the real winner may be debated for decades given the "deflategate" scandal hanging over the game.

The New England Patriots escaped a winter blizzard to make their way to the Super Bowl city of Phoenix on Monday but there was no avoiding another storm as the mystery of the deflated footballs continued to swirl.

NFL: Coach Pete Carroll said it was "belief in one another" that saw Seattle Seahawks complete a miracle comeback to reach the Super Bowl.

The Seattle Seahawks are going to the Super Bowl for the second time in two years after clinching a dramatic 28-22 win over the Green Bay Packers in overtime at CenturyLink Field.

The Green Bay Packers will face the Super Bowl champions, the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC title game after a thrilling weekend in the NFL play-offs.

Robbie Keane claims even the best artificial surfaces in the world reduce the quality of football by 30% but doesn’t foresee the Major Soccer League resolving the problem.

There’s no knowing what 2015 will serve up but it will start with a bang tomorrow in the US.

High profile coaching casualties followed quick on the heels of the final day of the NFL’s regular season as the San Francisco 49ers and the New York Jets parted ways with their coaches yesterday.

The Dallas Cowboys blew a 21-0 lead before rallying to beat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-27 and move to 10-4, one game ahead of Philadelphia at the top of the NFC East standings.

The Pittsburgh Steelers came on strong in the fourth quarter on Sunday night for a 42-21 NFL triumph over Cincinnati that blew open the AFC North division race.

Robbie Keane's Los Angeles Galaxy sealed their place in the MLS Cup on away goals after their two-leg clash with the Seattle Sounders finished 2-2 on aggregate.

Tom Brady sparked the New England Patriots to their seventh consecutive victory in a 34-9 rout of Detroit, while Indianapolis receiver T.Y. Hilton scored a touchdown for his newborn daughter.

It’s not clear yet what Thierry Henry is planning to do next season but there’s plenty life in the old dog, suggests John Riordan.

Tom Brady won the battle of the marquee quarterbacks over Peyton Manning, while the Arizona Cardinals knocked off the Dallas Cowboys to claim the NFC’s best record.

Chicago Bears’ defensive end Lamarr Houston will miss the rest of the season after a freak injury while celebrating a sack.

Peyton Manning broke Brett Favre’s all-time record for touchdown passes, leading Denver to a 42-17 rout of San Francisco to cap a scintillating Sunday in the NFL.

An embattled NFL, reeling from off-field brutality issues, received more bad news with numerous injuries to key players in the second week of an already tumultuous campaign.

Baltimore Ravens have released running back Ray Rice hours after a shocking video surfaced showing the NFL star punching his then-fiancee.

The most highly anticipated Super Bowl in recent memory somehow also managed to be the biggest disappointment.

Seattle Seahawks 43 Denver Broncos 8

The Seattle Seahawks produced one of the most dominant performances in Super Bowl history as Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos were neutralised in a 43-8 humbling.

“Jimmy; was it dead mother, blind father or blind mother, dead father?”

Now this is how you spell out your support for a team.

They might share a common cause but this weekend, the Denver Gaels and Seattle Gaels GAA clubs are split by a common desire for Super Bowl success.

It’s rare that the two best teams in the NFL make it through to the Super Bowl.

All eyes will be on Denver tomorrow as Peyton Manning and Tom Brady face each other for the 15th time.

The NFL couldn’t have scripted it much better heading into the last week of the regular season.

The Denver Broncos will be sweating this week on the fitness of quarterback Peyton Manning, who led them to their eighth win of the season on Sunday but saw his injury-prone ankle targeted in the process.