Super Bowl XXV, the matchup of the National Football League's best points allowed defense (the New York Giants yielded only 13.2 points per game in the 1990 season) against the league's highest scoring offense (the Buffalo Bills averaged 26.8 points) lived up to its potential, generating the kind of game worthy of this worldwide arena. Most Super Bowls have been dull and lopsided, especially during the National Football Conference's streak of six consecutive victories from 1985 through 1990. The NFC extended that string to seven on the strength of the Giants' upset triumph against Buffalo, a victory that wasn't clinched until the Bills' Scott Norwood misfired on a 47-yard field-goal attempt with eight seconds remaining in the game. Super Bowl XXV was played under much patriotic fervor, due to the then current Gulf War. The rousing rendition of the Star Spangled Banner, sung by Whitney Houston, exemplified the rage for anything red, white, and blue at the time. Buffalo jumped to a 12-3 lead midway through the second quarter before Hostetler completed a 14-yard scoring strike to wide receiver Stephen Baker to close the score to 12-10 at halftime. Fourteen of New York's 73 plays came on its initial drive of the third quarter, which covered 75 yards and consumed a Super Bowl record 9:29 before running back Ottis Anderson ran one yard for a touchdown.

Giants quarterback Jeff Hostetler kept the long drive going by converting three third down plays, an 11 yard pass to running back David Meggett on third and eight, a 14 yard toss to wide receiver Mark Ingram on third and 13, and a 9 yard pass to Howard Cross on third and four to give New York a 17-12 lead in the third quarter. Buffalo's Thurman Thomas ran 31 yards for a touchdown on the opening play of the fourth quarter to help Buffalo recapture the lead 19-17. Matt Bahr's 21 yard field goal gave the Giants a 20-19 lead, but Buffalo's Scott Norwood had a chance to win the game with seconds remaining before his 47 yard field goal attempt, the ball seemed on the right track at first, but by the time it had reached the goalposts, sailed wide right. Thomas totaled 190 scrimmage yards, rushing 15 times for 135 yards and catching five passes for 55 yards. The game itself was a rousing affair, contrasting the grind it out Giants with the high flying, quick scoring Bills. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants won their second Super Bowl in five years with a 20-19 victory over American Football Conference (AFC) titlist Buffalo Bills. New York Giants, employing its ball control offense, had possession for 40 minutes, 33 seconds, a Super Bowl record. The Bills, who scored 95 points in their previous two playoff games leading to Super Bowl XXV, had the ball for less than eight minutes in the second half and just 19:27 for the game. The game was played before a sellout crowd of 73,813 at Tampa Stadium and became the first Super Bowl decided by one point, January 26.

The ABC broadcast of the game was seen by more than 112-million people in the United States and was seen live or taped in 60 other countries. ABC televised the game in the United States, with announcers Al Michaels, Dan Dierdorf, and Frank Gifford. New York Giants running back Ottis Anderson was named Super Bowl Most Valuable Player (MVP), for carrying the ball 21 times for a total of 102 yards and one touchdown. Giants head coach Bill Parcells retired shortly after winning his second Super Bowl at the Giants. However, he has coached three other teams since then: the New England Patriots (whom he helped bring to Super Bowl XXXI from 1993-1997, Giants Stadium tenant New York Jets from 1997-1999, and after another, slightly longer retirement, long-time divisional rivals Dallas Cowboys since 2003.