Super Bowl XLIII

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Super Bowl XLIII was an American football game pitting the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers against the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Arizona Cardinals to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 2008 season. The game was played on February 1, 2009, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The Steelers (15-4) defeated the Cardinals (12-8) by a score of 27-23, earning their sixth Super Bowl win, which gave Pittsburgh the record for most Super Bowl wins and moved them ahead of the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys, whose shared record of five they had tied three years prior following their win in Super Bowl XL. Steelers receiver Santonio Holmes, who caught 9 passes for 131 yards and a touchdown, including 4 for 71 on their final scoring drive, was named Super Bowl MVP. He was the third Steelers receiver ever to win the award, following Lynn Swann and Hines Ward.

The Cardinals entered the game seeking their first NFL title since 1947, the longest championship drought in the league. The club became an unexpected winner during the season and the playoffs with the aid of head coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers' offensive coordinator in Super Bowl XL, and the re-emergence of quarterback Kurt Warner, who was the Super Bowl MVP in Super Bowl XXXIV with his former team, St. Louis Rams.

Despite the global financial crisis...
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