Has Notre Dame ever won a national championship in football? A look at the Fighting Irish’s history

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish is one of the most well-known programs in college football with a rich history. This season has seen them live up to expectations, having made the College Football Playoff semi-finals. They are one win away from making the national championship game.

In the wake of the expected appearance in the championship game, several fans have jogged their collective memory, trying to recall whether Notre Dame had ever won a Football National championship.

Has Notre Dame ever won a national championship in football?

Throughout their history, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish have won 11 national championships. The first came in 1924, under coach Knute Rockne with his infamous "four horsemen" backfield.

The most recent for the Fighting Irish came in 1988 in the only undefeated season of Lou Holtz's tenure with the team. In the final game of the season, the number one-ranked Fighting Irish defeated the number three-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers in the Fiesta Bowl to be crowned national champions.

Besides this, numerous national championships won by the Fighting Irish were not officially recognized. These stem from the old ways in which a national champion was decided in college football.

Before 1992, the national champion was decided by the committee. There were numerous polls and ranking systems to determine the champion, some of which were recognised by the NCAA, and others were not.

Has Notre Dame made any "National Championship games"?

The notion of a "national championship game" came to be in 1992, where a bowl game would involve the number one and number two ranked teams in the country. These teams would play for the "national championship."

It was not until the BCS in 1998 that a Bowl Game was directly referred to as the National Championship game.

The arrival of the College Football Playoff in 2014 made the game the reward for winning two select bowl games, whose usual requirements for participation were dropped to allow the top four teams to play in these games, no matter which conference they were from.

As the Fighting Irish have not won a national championship since 1988, they have not been able to win an actual "National championship game." However, have they made any?

Notre Dame made the 2013 National Championship Game, where they faced the Alabama Crimson Tide. The Crimson Tide outdid them despite being undefeated and the number-one-ranked team in the country.

They have never been back to a national championship game since but are one Orange Bowl win away from making it in 2025.