Puppy Bowl 2025: Meet Redbud, the mini Shepherd, Australian Cattle mix from Oklahoma

Puppy Bowl XXI is back with a new group of pups, including one from Oklahoma, amped for some furry pre-game football action ahead of Super Bowl LIX.

Adorable, adoptable puppies should be a pleasant distraction until the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs take the field for Super Bowl 59.

This year’s event will feature Redbud, a miniature American Shepherd and Australian Cattle mix adopted from the Oklahoma Humane Society.

Here’s what we know about the Puppy Bowl XXI event, how to watch, and this year’s Oklahoman on the roster:

What is the Puppy Bowl?

The Puppy Bowl is an annual program Animal Planet has presented since 2005 to raise awareness about adopting pets from shelters and rescuing abandoned animals.

This year, the Puppy Bowl will host a record number of four-legged athletes with 142 rescue puppies from 80 shelters across 40 states and two countries. It will be centered on their lives, from their births and rescues to their adoptions and the people behind the shelters that make it all possible.

The event is held in a dog-sized football field stadium measuring 19 feet long by 10 feet wide. The game will feature two opposing sides — Team Ruff and Team Fluff — that will play a game resembling football except there is a human “rufferee” keeping score as the dogs drag football-shaped toys into the end zone for a “puppy touchdown.”

When is the Puppy Bowl 2025?

The Puppy Bowl 2025 is scheduled to air at 1 p.m. CT on Sunday, Feb. 9.

It will be simulcast across Animal Planet, Discovery, Discovery+, TBS, truTV, and Max.

Puppy Bowl Teams

The Super Bowl and Puppy Bowl are both full of deja vu as both teams feature a match-up we may have seen before: Team Fluff vs Team Ruff.

The two teams compete for the Walmart “Lombarky” trophy and the MVP (Most Valuable Puppy) title. An online poll decides MVP.

Meet Redbud: Puppy Bowl 2025 participant from Oklahoma

Redbud is undeniably a good girl. She was originally a dog in the Oklahoma Humane Adoption Program before she was adopted.

Redbud is a mixed breed of Miniature American Shepherd and Australian Cattle Dog.

The Humane Society has made some merchandise for Redbud’s biggest fans while she plays on Sunday.

The limited-edition merchandise includes a mug, shirt and sweatshirt with Redbud’s face. Mugs can be purchased at the OK Humane Adoption Center in Oklahoma City, and shirts can be purchased here.

Puppy adoption

This year’s Puppy Bowl will also bring back adoptables segments “featuring puppies – and a few kittens – that will be available for adoption during the game,” Warner Bros. said.

Saman Shafiq contributed to this report.