Since the teams became
NFC West division rivals in 2002, the rivalry has grown considerably.[1] The rivalry was previously insignificant, due to both teams having little history against one another and both suffering long stretches of mediocrity. For example, while the Seahawks won four straight division titles from 2004 to 2007, the 49ers finished in third or fourth place each season and did not have a winning season from 2003 to 2010. Likewise, the Seahawks suffered four straight losing seasons from 2008 to 2011. Despite their stretch of mediocrity, the Seahawks have remained competitive in games against the 49ers in those years.
"It don't get much better than the 49ers...it felt like a Super Bowl when we were playing during that time."
The rivalry intensified in 2011, when long-standing
college rival coaches—former
USC coach
Pete Carroll and former
Stanford coach
Jim Harbaugh—took over as head coaches, with Carroll becoming the Seahawks' coach in
2010, and Harbaugh becoming the 49ers coach in
2011. Both teams drafted young, mobile quarterbacks to lead their franchises, Seattle's
Russell Wilson and San Francisco's
Colin Kaepernick.[9] Both coaches turned their respective franchises into perennial playoff contenders, and from 2010 to 2014, either the Seahawks or the 49ers won the NFC West championship.
The two teams met in the
2013 NFC Championship Game in Seattle with a trip to
Super Bowl XLVIII on the line, with the Seahawks winning 23–17. The game ended when Seahawks'
cornerbackRichard Sherman, whom Harbaugh previously coached at Stanford,
tipped an end zone pass that led to a game-ending interception. Sherman had his famous postgame interview immediately afterwards, calling out 49ers receiver
Michael Crabtree and claiming to be the "best corner in the game".[10] Seattle went on to defeat the
Denver Broncos 43–8 in Super Bowl XLVIII to win their first
Super Bowl championship.[11] San Francisco had represented the NFC in a losing effort in
Super Bowl XLVII the previous season. In 2018,
Richard Sherman joined San Francisco and took them to
Super Bowl LIV while coming a quarter short sparked the rivalry for a short while then it died down again.
The Seahawks lead the all-time series 30–22. After drafting Russell Wilson in 2012, the Seahawks dominated the rivalry, holding a 17–4 record against the 49ers before Wilson's departure in early 2022. After Wilson's departure, the 49ers have turned the rivalry around, winning the last 5, which is the longest win streak for the 49ers against the Seahawks.
Game results
San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks Season-by-Season Results
Seahawks join NFL as an expansion team and are placed in the NFC West.
The following season, they were moved to the AFC West, where they remained through
2001.
49ers win in Seattle (their first win in Seattle since 2011) in the final game of the season to clinch the NFC West and top seed. 49ers lose
Super Bowl LIV.
49ers "home game" took place at
State Farm Stadium in
Glendale, Arizona due to
COVID-19-related restrictions on contact sports in Santa Clara, and no fans attended either game.
49ers clinch the
NFC West division title with win in Seattle. 49ers sweep the Seahawks for the first time since
2011 and sweep the NFC West for the first time since
1997.