<Li> Sports Authority Field at Mile High (2001--present) </Li> <P> The Denver Broncos are an American football team based in Denver, Colorado . The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division . The team began play in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL) and joined the NFL as part of the merger in 1970 . The Broncos are owned by the Pat Bowlen trust . The Broncos have played at Sports Authority Field at Mile High since 2001, after previously playing at Mile High Stadium from 1960 to 2000 . </P> <P> The Broncos were barely competitive during their 10 - year run in the AFL and their first seven years in the NFL . They did not complete a winning season until 1973 . In 1977, four years later, they qualified for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history and advanced to Super Bowl XII . Since 1975, the Broncos have become one of the NFL's more successful teams, having suffered only six losing seasons . They have won eight AFC Championships (1977, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1997, 1998, 2013, 2015) and three Super Bowl championships (1997 (XXXII), 1998 (XXXIII), 2015 (50); sharing the record for second most Super Bowl appearances with the Dallas Cowboys, and Pittsburgh Steelers, right behind the New England Patriots record nine Super Bowl appearances . However, the Broncos have the NFL record for most Super Bowl losses (5). They have five players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame: John Elway, Floyd Little, Gary Zimmerman, Shannon Sharpe, and the most recently elected member, Terrell Davis . </P> <P> The Denver Broncos were founded on August 14, 1959, when Minor League Baseball owner Bob Howsam was awarded an American Football League (AFL) charter franchise . The Broncos won the first - ever AFL game over the Boston Patriots 13--10, on September 9, 1960 . On August 5, 1967, they became the first - ever AFL team to defeat an NFL team, with a 13--7 win over the Detroit Lions in a preseason game . However, the Broncos were not successful in the 1960s, compiling a record of 39--97--4 in the league . </P>

List of denver broncos in the hall of fame