The Twins win came months after the Minnesota North Stars lost in the Stanley Cup Finals. Under Coach Tom Coughlin, the Jaguars were a remarkably successful expansion franchise. But there is one important caveat: most of these cities have not had pro sports franchises for very long. Despite fielding nine teams, the most of any city in the country, New York has not won a title in nearly nine years, almost 3,200 days. The Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Tennessee Titans. Winnipeg has only one active team, the, There have been no championships in Jacksonville history. NBA championship drought: 39 seasons (1975-2013) Reason the drought ended: 2014 championship season (Warriors) Most recent championship season: 2017 season (Warriors) Total NBA championships: 4. The As most recent ALCS appearance resulted in a sweep by the Tigers in 06. It also has struggled with its back against the wall. Longest NFL / AFL / Super Bowl championship appearance droughts through history. It could be tantalizingly close misses, like the Buffalo Bills run of four straight Super Bowl losses in the 1990s. 6 seed. A citys sports misfortunes can come in different forms. To make matters worse, this team isnt even coming close to the Stanley Cup finals. The Cleveland Cavaliers snapped a 52-year championship drought June 19, 2016, when they toppled the Golden State Warriors in a best-of-seven series. Sacramento Kings - 71 years. It has been an essential part of our streaming toolkit for years. Jacksonville has only one active team, the, The most recent championship for Newark was the, The most recent championship for New Orleans was the, There have been no championships in Columbus history. The Ravens, as a result of the Cleveland Browns relocation controversy, absorbed the Browns' personnel upon their suspension, but not their history. New York Knicks - 49 years. The Seattle Mariners snapped one of the longest playoff droughts ever, making it into the MLB postseason . In 2015-16, Cam Newton would lead the Panthers to a 15-1 season that was capped off with a 49-15 rout of the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC Championship Game. The Royals beat the New York Knicks in seven games to win the 1951 NBA Finals. While the Seattle Mariners are far behind some others in the length of their title drought, they are in MLB history for another unfortunate reason. With C-Town now anointed NBA champions, let's look at the cities with two or more "Big Four" sports teams (meaning from the NFL, NBA, MLB or NHL sorry, MLS and college sports) that have gone the longest without a title. Athletics: 33 seasons (Last title in 1989)The As have enjoyed as many dynastic runs as any team outside the Yankees over the breadth of Major League history, but the last three decades have been a dry period in Oakland. The organizations last title came in 1947, when there were only 10 teams in the NFL and the Cardinals were playing in. The Mariners last made the playoffs in 2001, an unforgettable season for the team. They lost the championship the following season and did not reach the championship game for 60 years before falling to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl LIII. The NFL's longest current drought is held by the Oakland Raiders, who have not won a championship since 1972. Which NBA team has the longest championship drought? General manager Billy Beanes innovative roster strategies have kept the As competitive on small-market budgets, particularly during the clubs Moneyball period in the early 2000s, but the franchise has reached just two ALCS since last winning the World Series in 1989. Cleveland Guardians (MLB) - 73 years. The Colorado Avalanche last won the Stanley Cup in 2001. List of NFL franchise post-season droughts, AFC/NFC Championship Game appearance droughts, Super Bowl or NFL championship appearance droughts, Super Bowl or NFL championship win droughts, Cities/regions awaiting first Super Bowl crown, Closest approaches without winning the Super Bowl, Longest NFL / AFL / Super Bowl championship droughts through history, Longest NFL / AFL / Super Bowl championship appearance droughts through history, Playoff droughts of at least five seasons, Most consecutive post-season losses in team history, Longest post-season droughts in team history, Last edited on 13 February 2023, at 03:43, claimed an unrecognized 1921 championship, Chicago/St. While it was a finalist in MLBs 1993 and 1998 expansion, it got overlooked in favor of Miami and Tampa Bay. 2023 HotDog.com | 1013 Centre Road, Suite 403S Wilmington, New Castle, Delaware, 19805. They are one of 11 teams without an NBA championship. Longest championship title droughts in NBA history. The Sacramento skyline, as seen fromThe ZigguratinWest Sacramento, California. This list only shows droughts of 30 or more seasons for teams. Entire US Womens Soccer Team Sues US Soccer for Gender Discrimination, we covered franchise championship conference titles, conference finals, and playoff appearance droughts, team moved to Los Angeles in 2017 after 56 years in San Diego. The Cleveland Browns are tied for the second-longest conference championship game drought at 29 years. Last Title: 1948 (74-year drought) The Guardians have been the kings of the MLB twice in their 122 seasons of play. Pittsburgh Pirates - 6 years. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. Columbus has only one active team, the, There have been no championships in Memphis history. Since then the Bills have won only one playoff game - the 1995 Wild Card game. The Detroit Lions, are one of seven teams without a Super Bowl win. Tigers: 38 seasons (Last title in 1984)Detroits last trip to the World Series came in 2012, when the Tigers were swept at the hands of the Giants. (See The Vikings: Tale of Glory and Doom.). But the tide turned with a name change and new colors in 2008, when the franchise enjoyed a 31-win turnaround and claimed its first pennant before losing to the Phillies in five games in the World Series. They returned to the AFC Championship in 2002-03, losing to the Oakland Raiders 41-24. Here's a look at the longest championship droughts for teams still in their original cities. The Bucks made it back to the conference finals in 2001 with a team led by Hall of Famer Ray Allen and Sam Cassell in the backcourt and power forward Glenn Big Dog Robinson. The last championship in San Diego was the 1963 AFL Championship where the Chargers beat the Boston Patriots 51-10. And some of these droughts are especially surprising. The New York Liberty are the only original WNBA team with its original name that has never won a title, giving them a drought of 25 seasons. The longest currently active championship drought belongs to the city of Over the last 25 years, 62.7% of cities have won a championship in either the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, or MLS. Milwaukee has been home to MLBs Milwaukee Braves (now Atlanta Braves), the Milwaukee Brewers, the NBAs Milwaukee Hawks (now Atlanta Hawks) and Milwaukee Bucks, the NFLs Milwaukee Badgers and the Green Bay Packers which played some games in Milwaukee from 1933-1994 (Green Bay is not part of the Milwaukee metro area). If you value privacy, security, and access, you need a quality VPN. Meanwhile, the New York Rangers are now at a 27-year championship drought. Here are the U.S. and Canadian metros with the longest active championship droughts. Cincinnati is the 29th largest metropolitan area with a 2017 population of 2,179,082. Theyve made it twice total since last winning in 1984. Despite having a team in each of the five major sports, it has been more than three decades since . The Chargers traveled to Pittsburgh where, unlike the Freezer Bowl in Cincinnati, it was a balmy 59 degrees. Then Hulu started and he was hooked. It could be tantalizingly close misses, like the Buffalo Bills run of four straight Super Bowl losses in the 1990s. Blue Jays: 29 seasons (Last title in 1993)The road to the World Series title ran through Toronto at the beginning of the 1990s, but dynastic days north of the border subsided at the turn of the millennium. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); HotDog is the internet's oldest guide to cordcutting, replacing expensive cable or satellite TV with cheaper or free live stream and OTA options. Tennessee also stands out for its pro sports struggles. Researchers at HotDog.com ranked U.S. and Canadian metropolitan areas according to active professional sports championship droughts, including the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and MLS. Buffalos future is bright, but it is currently riding the longest playoff drought in NHL history with 11 consecutive seasons without an appearance in the NHL playoffs. 2023 ChampsOrChumps.us Terms Privacy Policy, The most recent championship for Minneapolis was the, The most recent championship for New York was the, The most recent championship for Phoenix was the, The most recent championship for Cincinnati was the, There have been no championships in Charlotte history. appreciated. In 2008-2009, the Arizona Cardinals came back from a 20-7 fourth quarter deficit to go ahead 23-20 with only 2:47 remaining in Super Bowl XLIII but Santonio Holmes amazing end zone catch gave the Pittsburgh Steeles the 27-23 win. Led by Dwight Howard, the Magic stunned LeBron James and the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in six games. Minnesota (Minneapolis/St. Here are the longest title droughts among the remaining NBA playoff teams, starting with the longest. Cleveland reached the World Series multiple times (1954, 95, 97 and 2016). While they have had some success in Memphis, they have only reached the conference finals once in 2013 where they were swept by the San Antonio Spurs. The Chargers were 19-point underdogs against Steve Young and San Francisco 49ers, who jumped to a 42-10 lead and coasted to a 49-26 win. The Twin Cities have been home to MLBs Minnesota Twins, NFLs Minnesota Vikings, the NBAs Minneapolis Lakers (now Los Angeles Lakers), the NHLs Minnesota North Stars (now Dallas Stars) and Minnesota Wild, the NASLs Minnesota Kicks (now defunct) and the MLS Minnesota United FC. Despite having a team in each of the five major sports, it has been more than three decades since Minnesota last saw a title, when the MLBs Twins won in 1991. At the metro level, one city currently stands out for the length of time without a professional sports title. For many of these teams, these streaks of decades without a championship extend beyond one generation. And here are the 10 longest World Series title droughts in MLB history that are no longer active (going back to the inaugural World Series in 1903): Cubs: 107 years (1909-2016)White Sox: 87 years (1918-2005)Red Sox: 85 years (1919-2004)Phillies: 77 years (1903-80)Orioles/Browns: 63 years (1903-66)Twins/Senators: 62 years (1925-87)Astros: 55 years (1962-2017)Giants: 55 years (1955-2010)Dodgers: 52 years (1903-55)Nationals/Expos: 50 years (1969-2019), MLB-record streak of elimination-game losses. Having played more seasons naturally makes it more likely that a team would win a championship at some point. DID YOU KNOW?FuboTV offers 38+ sports-oriented channels, which is why it might be the best option for live TV for sports fans. Each of the traditional Big Four sports leagues expanded into new markets throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, while Major League Soccer has only existed since 1996. The 10 longest championship droughts in professional sports. In the world of major professional sports, some cities are known as consistent winners, while others have a long history of hard luck in the search for a sports championship. Locations were attributed wins for championships won by teams that were branded to be from the location at the time it took place. Neither the Reds nor the Bengals have played in a Championship Game since then. The franchise is 0-4 in potential championship clinchers over its past two trips to the Series, having squandered a 3-1 advantage to the Cubs in 2016. Since then the Wild has only had eight playoff appearance and won only two playoff series. Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald came within a minute of ending that streak in 2007, but a six-yard Santonio . Then in the Super Bowl, they almost pulled off another miracle, as Kevin Dyson (who scored the Music City Miracle) was stopped a foot shy of a game-tying touchdown on the final play of the game. Which NFL team has the longest Super Bowl drought? are the only original WNBA team with its original name that has never won a title, giving them a drought of 25 seasons. Guardians: 74 seasons (Last title in 1948) Cleveland has had its chances during this time, but it lost World Series in 1954, '95, '97 and 2016 -- four of the club's 12 postseason appearances since beating the Boston Braves in the 1948 Fall . Further ties were broken by the team with the most active professional sports franchises. This is also a list of the last time a particular club won a divisional playoff game. The Mariners ended their 21-year postseason drought in 2022 before losing to the division-rival Astros in the ALDS. Since then, the Os have fallen in the ALCS in 1996, 97 and 2014. (MEDIA GENERAL) After 108 years of waiting for another World Series ring, the Chicago Cubs ended the longest championship drought in major American professional sports history. Pottsville won the game 21-7, a win that should have secured the championship. Current NFL cities/regions only. After losing to Detroit (4-1) in the 1984 World Series, the Padres won the pennant again in 1998 (in only their second playoff appearance since 1984). The Wild has reached the Conference Finals only once getting swept by the Anaheim Ducks in 2003. Buffalo's drought tops the next-highest city by nine years, and only two other cities besides Buffalo have championship droughts longer than 50 years. Active droughts are listed in bold type In their second season in Nashville, the Titans reached the Super Bowl for the only time in an amazing season that included surviving a near upset in the Wild Card game thanks to the infamous Music City Miracle 75-yard kick off return. Last championship: 1994 Getty Images The Rangers are one of the NHL's "Original Six" teams and last hoisted the Stanley Cup in 1994 to end a 54-year title drought. 9. Time flies by and those same fans are capturing their children and even grandchildren in that same feeling. June 20, 2016 2:16 pm. To put that 21-year drought into perspective, 28-year-old Jaromir Jagr led the NHL in points (121) during the 2000-01 regular season. Rays: 25 years (No titles)Tampa Bay debuted as the Devil Rays and began with some lean times, averaging 97 losses over its first 10 seasons. Here are the longest championship droughts in the four major American professional sports. Cleveland last won a championship 69 years ago, in 1948. Though no other American sports franchise has reached the century mark for years without a title, there . Note that the NFL did not institute a permanent playoff tournament until 1967 and that the NFL Championship Game and any impromptu one-game playoffs (played only in the event of a tie atop the division standings) were the only postseason matchups in this era. and, in a few cases, century-long curses. Since then, the team has used four different names and reached just two conference finals, losing both. . Here are the teams with the longest-running droughts in the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and WNBA: Twelve NFL teams have never won a Super Bowl, but no team has gone longer without a championship than the Arizona Cardinals. 8 Philadelphia 76ers: 38 . The organizations last championship came in 1951, when the team was the Rochester Royals. Of those 12, they have the longest championship victory or appearance drought. The Rays pushed the Dodgers one game further in '20, but still came up short in six games. But the magic hasnt been sufficient enough in the years since, though the Mets did enjoy plenty of memorable moments during their NL pennant runs in 2000 and 15. The team came close to winning the inaugural WNBA championship in 1997 but fell to the Houston Comets. 4:20 PM EDT, Sun October 23, 2016. The last time the Lions won a championship came in 1957, when they defeated the Cleveland Browns in the NFL Championship Game. Not included are some long-suffering cities whose prayers were recently answered such as Atlanta (Atlanta United), Cleveland (Cavaliers), Houston (Astros), Kansas City (Royals), Portland (Timbers) and Washington (Capitals). The Padres made the playoffs for the second time in the last three seasons in 2022 and upset the Mets and Dodgers to reach the NLCS. Today, he streams pretty much everything while his library of thousands of Blu-rays and DVDs collects dust. Thanks to the Capitals, Detroit has now moved up the list of cities with the longest-running title droughts. The Kings lost Game 6 in Los Angeles 106-102 in a controversial game that many have claimed demonstrates that the league wanted to ensure that the marquee Lakers and not the small-market Kings reached the NBA Finals; as in the final minutes, all foul calls and non-calls went the Lakers way. Tennessee also stands out for its pro sports struggles. Instead, it was the Rockets who swept the Magic as Hakeem Olajuwon outplayed the younger Shaq. 2. The data was sourced from pro-football-reference.com, basketball-reference.com, baseball-reference.com, hockey-reference.com, and fbref.com. Featured Photo Credit: Doug Lemke / Shutterstock. gone 116 seasons without winning a championship. Seattle then went 20 years without making it back to the postseason, but that streak is now over. For some fans, however, hope all is all they have had for too long. Sacramento Kings - 1951. Between the NHLs Sabres (established 1970) and the NFLs Bills (established 1960), Buffalo has never experienced a sports championship in 62 years of having teams. The Longest NFL Championship Droughts The wait can be miserable. The Cardinals' 70-year championship drought is one year longer than the team the Cubs beat Wednesday. It is the largest city on the list and the only one with teams in all major leagues. San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA. Orlando has not won a title since becoming a pro-city in 1989 when the Orlando Magic joined the NBA. But if youre not going to count those as championships then you have to start counting years with the start of Super Bowls. The Celtic defense, however, shut the Bucks down in the fourth quarter of Game 7 as they cruised to a 102-87 win. After being eliminated from postseason contention in Week 18, the New York Jets have the longest active NFL playoff drought at 12 seasons. San Jose has only one active team, the, The most recent championship for Chicago was the, There have been no championships in Winnipeg history. Sacramento has quite a playoff drought going, as it last reached . Only one team can win the World Series every year, but some fanbases have been waiting a long time to see their team raise the Commissioners Trophy. Answer (1 of 3): Counting AFL championships and defunct teams, the longest current droughts for an entire city winning any major sports championship are: 1. The Phoenix Suns have the longest championship drought by a team without a single title. Frank loves video.