Super Bowl XLIII was (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers against the (NFC) champion Arizona Cardinals. The game was played on February 1, 2009, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The Steelers (15-4) defeated the Cardinals (12-8) by a score of 27-23, earning their sixth Super Bowl win, which gave Pittsburgh the record for most Super Bowl wins and moved them ahead of the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys, whose shared record of five they had tied three years prior following their win in Super Bowl XL. Steelers receiver Santonio Holmes, who caught 9 passes for 131 yards and a touchdown, including 4 for 71 on their final scoring drive, was named Super Bowl MVP. He was the third Steelers receiver ever to win the award, following Lynn Swann and Hines Ward.

The Cardinals entered the game seeking their first NFL title since 1947, the longest championship drought in the league. The club became an unexpected winner during the season and the playoffs with the aid of head coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers’ offensive coordinator in Super Bowl XL, and the re-emergence of quarterback Kurt Warner, who was the Super Bowl MVP in Super Bowl XXXIV with his former team, St. Louis Rams.

Despite the global financial crisis and limited amount of ancillary festivities that are normally held before the game, the NBC television network broadcast attracted an average U.S. audience of 98.7 million viewers, making it the most-watched Super Bowl in history to that point (now third behind Super Bowl XLV and Super Bowl XLIV).

Pittsburgh took the opening kickoff and moved down the field on a 71-yard scoring drive, with Ben Roethlisberger completing a 38-yard pass to Hines Ward and a 21-yard strike to Heath Miller, putting the ball at the Arizona 1-yard line. On third down, Roethlisberger appeared to score on a quarterback scramble, but it was overruled by a replay challenge, which determined that he was down before the ball crossed the goal line. Rather than make another attempt at a touchdown, Pittsburgh settled for a Jeff Reed 18-yard field goal to take the 3–0 lead. The Steelers quickly forced an Arizona punt and then drove back down the field for what would turn into more points. On the first play of their drive, Roethlisberger completed a 25-yard pass to Santonio Holmes. Following three more completions to Miller for 26 yards and another one to Holmes for 7, reserve running back Gary Russell went into the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown run to make the score 10–0 on the second play of the second quarter. They became the first team to score on its first two drives since the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXXII. On defense, Pittsburgh held Arizona to just one drive and one first down in the first quarter, while gaining 135 yards.

The Cardinals got going for the first time midway through the second quarter as a 45-yard completion from Kurt Warner to Anquan Boldin moved the ball to the Steelers’ 1-yard line. On the next play, Warner nearly fell over after taking the snap, but he regained his balance and threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Ben Patrick. After an exchange of punts, Roethlisberger threw a pass that was tipped at the line of scrimmage and intercepted by linebacker Karlos Dansby at the Steelers 34-yard line with 2:46 left in the half. Seven plays later, the Cardinals drove to a first down on the Pittsburgh 1-yard line. But with 18 seconds left, Warner’s pass was intercepted in the end zone by linebacker James Harrison, who then took off down the sideline for the longest play in Super Bowl history, a 100-yard return for a touchdown, increasing the Steelers’ lead to 17–7 at halftime. A booth review was called to verify that Harrison had broken the plane, as he was tackled at the goal line, and the ruling stood. The official NFL Films footage for the game showed that Larry Fitzgerald was about to tackle Harrison at Arizona’s 30-yard line, but teammate Antrel Rolle was illegally standing inside the sideline area and blocked Fitzgerald’s path, allowing Harrison to get enough distance that he could cross the goal line when Fitzgerald caught up to him at the return’s end.

After forcing a punt, the Steelers started off the third quarter with another long scoring drive. Aided by three personal foul penalties against Arizona, they moved the ball 79 yards in 14 plays and took 8:39 off the clock. However, they were unable to get into the end zone, despite two first downs inside the Cardinals 10 (a penalty against Arizona on a Steelers field goal attempt gave them another chance), and they had to settle for another Reed field goal to give them a 13-point lead, 20–7. After a few more punts, Warner led the Cardinals down the field on an eight-play, 87-yard scoring drive that took 3:57 off the clock, utilizing a no huddle offense. With 7:33 left in the game, Warner threw a high floating pass to Fitzgerald, who made a leaping catch through tight coverage by Ike Taylor for a touchdown, making the score 20–14.

Later on, Ben Graham’s 34-yard punt pinned the Steelers back at their own 1-yard line. Two plays later on third down and 10, Roethlisberger threw a 20-yard pass to Holmes, but center Justin Hartwig was called for holding in the end zone, which not only nullified the catch, but gave the Cardinals a safety, raising the score to 20–16. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin later stated that losing the two points didn’t faze him, as it didn’t change how the Steelers called plays for the rest of the game on either defense or offense. Taking over on their own 36 after the free kick, Arizona took two plays to score, as Warner threw a pass to Fitzgerald on a post route. Fitzgerald caught the ball without breaking stride and took off down the middle of the field past the Steelers secondary for a 63-yard touchdown reception, giving Arizona their first lead of the game, 23–20.