This has not always been the case. From Super Bowl I to Super Bowl IV, when the game was the "AFL (American Football League)-NFL World Championship Game", the officiating crews consisted of members from both leagues. Then for Super Bowl XXXVIII and Super Bowl XXXIX, the NFL selected the highest rated crew during the regular season. This was a reaction to several officiating mistakes during the 2002-03 playoffs, and the league felt that preserving the familiarity and cohesiveness of the officiating crews during the postseason might reduce the errors.
