Pooch-down: the Puppy Bowl is back this year!

New York, New York - There’s another game happening on Super Bowl Sunday, but it has nothing to do with sports and everything to do with puppies.

The Puppy Bowl is up its 17th edition this year.
The Puppy Bowl is up its 17th edition this year.  © Screenshot/ Instagram/ Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet

That’s right, the 21st annual Puppy Bowl is back, and set to air on Discovery+ and Animal Planet on February 7th, just hours before the real Super Bowl kicks off.

This year’s game will feature 70 different heart-meltingly adorable and adoptable pups who will face off for the "Lombarky" trophy – the most prestigious trophy a pup will ever unknowingly compete for.

Fan-favorite aspects of the game, like the nose-to-nose action footage and slow-motion replays, are back, along with new elements like drone shots and aerial footage, bringing dog lovers at home as close to the action as possible.

Cat goes missing for days before owners receive "miracle" call
Cats Cat goes missing for days before owners receive "miracle" call

Each pooch submitted to a DNA test prior to the game to determine their breeds so that the commentators, ESPN’s play-by-play announcer Steve Levy and SportsCenter host Sage Steele, can discuss the doggie players’ strengths and weaknesses on the field.

The three-hour event will pit "Team Fluff" against "Team Ruff," with a newly added element to motivate the pups to compete their little hearts out – cheerleaders, who are also up for adoption, of course.

"These cheerleading pups will turn up the volume with cuteness overload by shaking their pom-poms as the Puppy Bowl XVII players make their way down the field!" a Discovery statement added.

The last 16 Puppy Bowls had no puppies left behind, toting a 100% adoption rate, and they’re hoping 2021 will be the same.

To find out which team takes it all, tune into the Puppy Bowl on February 7 at 1 PM CST on Discovery+ and Animal Planet.

Cover photo: Screenshot/ Instagram/ Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet

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