The Cleveland Indians have endured a 66-year championship drought to lead the city in sports futility. The city of Cleveland might have LeBron James and Johnny Manziel, but championships have been hard to come by. Longest active championship droughts in sports Now that the Chicago Cubs have won their first World Series in 108 years, the longest active championship drought belongs to ... More Videos They got the monkey of their back in a big way in 2019. The Cubs have not made a World Series appearance since 1945, and have not won a championship since 1908, the longest drought in North American sports. Despite launching the careers of Andre Dawson, Tim Raines and others, the Expos were never considered to be a postseason threat. The Brewers started off in the American League, but moved to the National League in 1998. The team has only won one playoff game, in 1991, since that last championship in 1957. The Detroit Lions were a very successful NFL football team in the 1950's, last winning a title in 1957. The Arizona Cardinals are one of the charter members of the NFL, which was established in 1920. To determine which team has suffered the longest championship drought in each current conference, we assessed date of last title for all current FBS teams. Honorable Mention: Vancouver Canucks and Cleveland Cavaliers - 44 seasons. The result: a team that won five of the first fifteen World Series suffered, and the New York Yankees went on to become the most successful franchise in North American sports. Moreover, the team hasn’t appeared in a World Series since 1945 (they lost to the Detroit Tigers). In the 67 years since their last title, the Cardinals have won a total of six playoff games. They have made it to the big game twice (1981, 1988) but ran into a very determined San Francisco 49ers squad both times. The Kansas City Chiefs have struggled since winning the AFL Championship and Super Bowl IV many years ago. The team has had 19 playoff appearances in the Super Bowl era,  with Earl Campbell, Warren Moon and Steve McNair leading the way, since winning its last title in 1961. Here is a look at the longest active championship droughts, including all of those that go back to at least 1998. What is the Longest Championship Drought in Professional Sports? This curse was placed on the Cubs in 1945 by one Billy Sianis, who was asked to leave a World Series game because his stinky pet goat that he brought with him to the game was bothering other fans. The Jets have had some characters and even a good number of playoff teams, including four trips to the AFC Championship, but futility has been more like par for the course. The Curse of the Billy Goat has manifested itself many times, most recently in the 2003 National League Championship Series against the Florida Marlins, where fan Steve Bartman infamously obstructed a Cubs player from catching a foul ball late in the game in a crucial situation. With the Chicago Cubs winning the World Series and ending a 108-year title drought, the Heat Index decided to take a look at title droughts in the four major pro sports. It does show the longest drought in each sport. The current team has a good nucleus on offense, but the defense and team's ability to overcome injuries is still rather suspect. The Suns had their chances when the team included Kevin Johnson, Dan Majerle, Charles Barkley and Danny Ainge. The Chicago Cubs are affectionately known as lovable losers. Following his trade to Pittsburgh, Layne allegedly said that Detroit would not win a championship for 50 years. The current team has one of the best receivers in the league, Calvin Johnson, and defensive players as well, Ndamukong Suh, but still manage to struggle with the consistency necessary to break their streak. Previous championship: 1917 Broke drought: 2005 Total length: 88 years Close calls: The White Sox are the one team on this list that actually threw away a chance to shorten their drought. Philly fans love their Eagles, but have little patience when it comes to voicing their displeasure with a loud chorus of boos. The current Cardinals have a terrific defense and state of the art stadium but must pick it up on offense in order to have a realistic chance at putting an end to their championship drought. Following their 1985 victory, the Tigers went on an eighteen year losing streak, attributed to the lost statue in the canal. If LeBron could swing a bat, the Indians might be able to end their championship drought. The current squad has as good of a chance as any to end this championship drought. Chip Kelly has brought some excitement back to Philadelphia and its fans, but it remains to be seen if this era will produce any championships. And even then, they were pounded by the Detroit Tigers, 9-3, in Game 7, with their starting pitcher lasting only three batters. Many Super Bowls have passed since Namath's famous remark, but the Jets haven't been successful enough in any year since to be a participant in the big game. However, after their busy winter a lot of people are expecting that to come to an end this year. They have yet to even make it back to the Stanley Cup Final since their last championship in 1967. The Lions’ last NFL title came in 1957, while the Browns’ most recent pre-Super Bowl championship appearance was a win in 1964. But other than the Blues and the three MLS clubs, all … Offense has historically been the team's strong point. He enjoys stats like a geek enjoys computers and loves to make sense of any stats or numbers. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yp3h7o8u8Fg[/youtube], The Hanshin Tigers: The Curse of the Colonel. The Milwaukee Brewers entered MLB as the Seattle Pilots in 1969, but the franchise fell into bankruptcy and was bought by Bud Selig and moved to Milwaukee before the start of the 1970 season. The longest drought in NFL history — and the longest active drought for any North American sports team — belongs to the Arizona Cardinals. The second-longest drought in the big leagues isn’t nearly as long. Cleveland is so cursed there are multiple curses. A 22 year title drought was followed by success as they won 3 Grey Cups in seven years (1984, 1988 & 1990). The Bills haven't even been capable of doing that lately, with their last playoff appearance occurring all the way back in 1999, a game they lost thanks to the famous Music City Miracle. The Cincinnati Bengals entered the NFL in 1968 and have yet to win a championship. The NBA franchise was successful in the late 1950's and early 1960's when the team won a title over the Boston Celtics when it represented St. Louis in 1958. He will stop all activities to watch San Francisco 49er games and has been an avid fan of UCLA basketball for most of his life. Even though the team has a proven new manager in Joe Maddon and Jon Lester as their new pitching ace, a 106-year curse is a scary obstacle to overcome. Or so they thought. Had Carson Palmer remained healthy this season, the Cardinals likely would've been seen as Super Bowl favorites. The San Diego Padres get a slight nod over the Brewers only because they have spent all their time of futility in one city. The longest drought overall now belongs to the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals at 69 years. To be fair, the list above may be a tad misleading. They have not won a playoff game since 1990, going one-and-out five times since then. Cardinals (1947): The Cardinals seemed close to breaking the longest drought in pro sports. It is hard to imagine rooting for a team that hasn't won a title in over 100 years, but that continues to happen in one major U.S. city. Many fans are eager to see their favorite team win the game, in the hopes that win. During the victory celebrations, Tigers fans gathered at the Ebisubashi Bridge in Osaka, shouted a Hanshin player’s name, and then threw another fan that looked like the player into the dirty canal under the bridge. The following 25 teams are united by their common mission to end their championship droughts. The current Cardinals have a terrific defense and state of the art stadium but must pick it up on offense in order to have a realistic chance at putting an end to their championship drought. It still seems pretty likely that this season will not bring an end to this championship drought. This win was huge for Winnipeg. The early Brewers had some success with Robin Yount, but have only one World Series appearance to show for this era. The current Suns team continues the franchise's tradition of having an exciting team, but ending the title drought would be a stretch that extends far beyond a half-court three point shot. The Browns have always had a very passionate fan base, but haven't even given fans a Super Bowl appearance since the first game was first played in 1967. The Buffalo Bills got their start in the AFL, where they won two consecutive titles in 1964 and 1965. This is a list of current National Football League (NFL) franchise post-season … Michael Jordan even got in the fun by owning the Cleveland Cavaliers with his famous shot in the 1989 NBA Playoffs. February 1, 2021 by Football History Dude In honor of Super Bowl week, in this episode of “ When Football Was Football ,” we’ll take you back to explore the last championship of the team now known as the Arizona Cardinals. The Vikings have had 27 playoff appearances and 18 division championships since becoming a member of the NFL in 1961. The first true championship won by the Cardinals came in 1947. Before this, though, the Red Sox had a long history of almost making missing the playoffs or losing in the postseason in dramatic fashion. 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Jamie Squire/Getty Images. Bad as that is (especially in a league with only nine teams), it's far from the longest championship drought in sports. The San Diego Chargers have a long championship drought that goes back to the AFL days, where the Chargers won their last title in 1963. The team has gone 71 seasons without winning a league title, with its last coming via the 1947 NFL Championship when … The Houston Oilers won the AFL title the first two seasons the team was a member of the league. The Suns have also seen the likes of Paul Westphal as a player and coach, Sir Charles Barkley, Steve Nash and Jason Kidd, only to come up short during the playoffs. Their big issue now is in just making it to the playoffs. Hawks fans did get to enjoy "The Human Highlight Film", Dominique Wilkins, throughout the 80's and 90's, but not much else. These are the "diehard fans" of teams that continue to be mediocre year after year or teams that show enough consistency to make the playoffs only to never be able to win the big game. The Padres not only have a lengthy title drought, but also have the distinction of being the only MLB team yet to have a no-hitter thrown. In beating the Tampa Bay Rays, the Dodgers broke a 32-year World Series drought.. It will not get any easier for the Cubs and their fans as the club is coming off a 73-89 season and last place finish in the NL Central. Don't look for this championship streak to end any time soon. Since then, all three major franchises have experienced misfortune. The supposed curse came after the Lions traded the legendary Bobby Layne after he'd led the Lions to three straight NFL Championships. There was only one problem: they couldn’t find a Japanese person who looked like Randy Bass. On September 26, 2014, the Kansas City Royals beat the Chicago White Sox and clinched a spot in the American League Playoffs.The win ended their 29-year postseason drought, which was the longest active playoff drought in professional sports. Despite their storied past, the current Vikings are in no position to end this current title drought. They also have a lot of difficulty closing out games, and despite making it to the playoffs  in four of the last six seasons, they won just one playoff game in that stretch. The lovable Chicago Cubs of MLB have such a loyal fan base for a team that has not won a championship in more than a century (106 years). While there is no set formula for deciding when simple bad luck turns into a curse, when the championship droughts last for so long and defy the obvious explanations when people look to the supernatural. The Maple Leafs have struggled to finish seasons with a positive goal differential, even though they have been fortunate enough to win their share of close games. The New York Jets haven't won a Super Bowl since Joe Namath boldly predicted they would beat the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III. Major-league baseball has had three teams end long championship droughts in the last 15 years — the Boston Red Sox (85 years), the Chicago White Sox … If they can win another playoff series like they did in 2012, they might have a chance. Previous championship: 1908 Broke drought: 2016 Total length: 108 years Close calls: The Cubs lostthe World Series seven times after their first title, only one of which lasted seven games. Since the franchise started off as the Buffalo Braves in 1970, the team has not even won a conference championship. Among teams … The Minnesota Vikings' last championship title was for the NFL in 1969. In the 1985 Japan championship series, the Hanshin Tigers defeated the Seibu Lions largely from the bat of American star Randy Bass. A legend arose that the team won’t win until the statue is recovered, long considered impossible. If you did a top ten list of cities having at least two Big Four pro sports teams with the longest championship droughts, it would be: San Diego 1963 Cleveland 1964 Buffalo 1965 Milwaukee 1971 Cincinnati 1990 Minneapolis-St. Paul 1991 Washington DC 1992 Toronto 1993 Atlanta 1995 Houston … The "Nats" have as good a chance of any on this list of ending this title drought sometime soon. At least Charger fans have been able to enjoy the Dan Fouts era, dynamic players like Lance Alworth and LaDainian Tomlinson to name a few and even the connection between Philip Rivers and Antonio Gates. It's interesting that the team experienced some early success as the Rochester Royals, only to move to Cincinnati and then Kansas City for financial reasons. For the 54 seasons of the franchise's existence, the team has only two World Series appearances (2010, 2011) and six playoff appearances. Way back then, before the NFL-AFL merger, the Cleveland Browns won the NFL Championship. Willie Ways made one of the most famous catches of all time against the Indians in the 1954 World Series, and in 1997, the Indians lost the World Series despite winning for most of Game Seven. Their lone trip to the Super Bowl came in the 1998-99 season, defeating the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship, only to be overwhelmed by the Broncos in Super Bowl XXXIII. The Texas Rangers started out as the Washington Senators before moving to Arlington, Texas prior to the 1972 season. Although the Toronto Maple Leafs are catching up, currently sitting at … Blake Griffin and Chris Paul might be on a mission to change the Clippers' losing ways, but even two playoff berths in a row is an accomplishment for this franchise. Despite having major sports franchises in baseball, football, and basketball, the city of Cleveland has not won a major sports championship since 1964. Their drought since then includes four consecutive Super Bowl appearances (1990-1993) where they where left knocking on the door with teams that included Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, Bruce Smith and Andre Reed. The Falcons did make it to the Super Bowl following the 1998 NFL season, but the franchise has more double digit losing seasons (21) than playoff appearances (12) throughout the team's existence. The Phoenix Suns were established in 1968 and have made it to the NBA Finals twice, but have no titles to show for their efforts. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owzPCGIhvrg[/youtube], The City of Cleveland: Longest Championship Drought Championship Droughtof any American City. It remains to be seen if the curse if lifted. The record for the longest drought ever goes to the New York Rangers who went 54 years (1940 to 1994). Astonishingly, divers who thought they had found a human corpse finally found the Colonel Sanders statue on March 10, 2009. The Indians have a history that dates back to the Cleveland Lake Shores in 1900 and includes only two world championships (1920, 1948) since this time. Their patient fans were rewarded with a wild card berth in 2013 followed up with a respectable 85-77 season in 2014. Despite making it to the playoffs 20 times since winning their last NFL championship in 1960, the Eagles have failed to bring another title home to its fans in Philadelphia. Short-term sporting woes can usually be explained away by a litany of excuses, from poor management to plain bad luck. The Indians have played much better since manager Terry … Let's hope for Detroit's sake that was the end of the spell. "Johnny Football" Manziel might be able to energize the Browns fan base, but it will take more than one player to end the team's championship drought. The Washington Nationals are by far the most futile of the three MLB teams whose title droughts equal 46 years. Here’s a look at four of the most prominent curses in sports history. Here are the longest current championship droughts in the NBA. Eerily enough, 50 years after the trade is when the Lions went 0-16. Craig enjoys writing about the NFL and NBA, but follows all sports including NCAA football and basketball. The St. Louis Blues are members of the original six-team expansion that doubled the size of the NHL in 1967. The curse started after Red Sox owner Harry Frazee allegedly sold star player Babe Ruth, aka the Great Bambino, to help finance a Broadway musical. They managed to make a Super Bowl appearance debuting as the Titans in 1999. Twenty haven't won one in the past 20 years. The Atlanta Hawks have represented the city of Atlanta since 1968 and despite the long tenure, they have not been able to bring a victory parade to the city's downtown. They made the NFC championship game last year, had a good core and a … The Lions have had many exciting players on their roster, including the great Barry Sanders, but expectations never seem to be met. The 68-year-old was actually part of the Knicks' last championship as a player back in 1973. It seems like the Browns haven't been able to draft an elite quarterback or productive running back who could enable them to get over the hump. They are one team on this list that has a more realistic chance at ending this drought if they could learn to win in the playoffs. The current Sacramento team has had similar financial issues, despite having a loyal fan base and talented young roster that would probably make them a playoff team in the East. The Blues have yet to earn a Stanley Cup, but do have the distinction of making it to the playoffs in 25 consecutive seasons, a steak that ended in 2004. Fans of a select number of professional teams have learned to have short memories and forgive their favorite teams for one season after another of agony or futility or a combination of both. Cincinnati: 26 years The Philadelphia Eagles have been one of the most competitive teams to make it on this list. Across North America, fans don the jerseys of their favorite teams and flock to arenas and stadiums to see them play. In the Chargers' 15 playoff appearances since 1963, they have made it to only one Super Bowl (1994) where they were beaten decisively by the San Francisco 49ers. The Blues have made it to the Stanley Cup Final three times-- which were their first three years of existence, in 1968, 1969 and 1970, but have never been able to finish with hoisting the cup. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evzSA7_yJHw[/youtube], The Chicago Cubs: The Curse of the Billy Goat. Up until last year they had the longest run without a championship in the CFL. They went on to lose the NFL-AFL Title game (Super Bowl) to the Kansas City Chiefs, making the Vikings title drought more severe. They threw the statue in the canal and continued on their merry way. Despite being the laughing stock of sports for more than a decade and winning just four games from 2015-2017, the Browns actually own the second-longest active playoff drought in sports at 16 years. The Vikings have had Fran Tarkenton, the "Purple People Eaters" and their share of great players of the past and even present (Adrian Peterson), but they have struggled to win the big games. Getting their start as the Chicago Cardinals, the team eventually moved to St. Louis, later to Tempe, Arizona and finally to Glendale, Arizona where the team currently resides. The enormity of this drought is compounded by the fact that Chicago is the third most populated U.S. city as well as third most populous metropolitan area. Wining close games has not been enough for a fan base that supported a team scored 84 points last year without qualifying for the playoffs. Further, one franchise (the Indians) has a current championship drought that pre-dates the … The Sacramento Kings of the NBA had some terrific teams with Chris Webber, Mike Bibby and Peja Stojakovich, pushing the Lakers in the Western Conference and energizing their fan base, but the franchise has had a long history of coming up short. Despite having some talented players come through its ranks, the Rangers have struggled to put it all together in one season of play. This included titles won in … There are many teams tied at droughts of 44 years, but the Clippers' NBA drought is quite severe. The current version of the team is a glorified minor league team at best guided by leadership that is determined to keep payroll costs in check. In most cases, a victory is far from assured and the postseason will have to wait for yet another year. These seven teams fit the mold, in order of longest drought. Way back then, before the NFL-AFL merger, the Cleveland Browns won the NFL Championship. Unbelievably, the Clippers have had only two divisional championships, which were won recently in 2013 and 2014. The Padres face the reality of being a small market team, so don't look for a quick change or end to this drought. Fans have been asked to have patience, however, there remains to be very little to get excited about in the immediate future. The City of Cleveland: Longest Championship Drought Championship Droughtof any American City. The only way the curse can be lifted, according to Sianis’s descendants, is that the Cubs show a genuine affection for goats and allow them into the stadium not because they were forced, but because they really want them there. Craig Keolanui is a writer with expertise in sports, small business and biotechnology stocks. The Cardinals have had some close encounters with success, more recently with Kurt Warner, but remain the NFL team with the longest active championship drought of 67 years. The Boston Red Sox: The Curse of the Bambino. When they reached, and lost, the Japan Series in 2003, local KFC’s bolted down all their statues to prevent another theft. The Clippers still have to learn how to beat the Spurs and Thunder before thinking about ending this drought. What You Don’t Know About Weekend Adventure Holidays, The New Fuss About Great Adventure Holidays, Rumored Buzz on Weekend Adventure Holidays Uncovered, Best Essay Writing Service: No Longer a Mystery, 101 Movie One-Liners Everyone Should Know, All Grown Up: The 23 Hottest Former Child Stars, Ready Your Shift Key: 30 Classic PC Games That Still Rule, 50 Drinking Games Guaranteed to Get You Hammered. Some of the 25 teams that have the longest active championship droughts might be surprising, but a good number are well known for being absent from the postseason festivities at the end of each year. When the Chicago Cubs won the World Series last year, they ended the longest championship drought in North American Sports — 108 years. So here they are: The cities (counting only those with two or more teams from the big four leagues) that are in the middle of longest championship droughts: 1. Then came the longest title drought in club history. Unfortunately for their fan base, that success was very short lived. The current edition of the team is competitive, but not that much closer to ending the team's longstanding championship drought. Since its last title in 1961, the team's championship drought has been lengthy but not devoid of successful moments. See the U.S. cities that have gone the longest without winning a major sports title. Their effort was good for a 6th place finish in the Atlantic Division of the NHL. The fans found the next best thing; they went their local KFC and tore loose a statue of Colonel Sanders, the only white guy they could find. The Cardinals have had some close encounters with success, more recently with Kurt Warner, but remain the NFL team with the longest active championship drought of 67 years. The Cleveland Browns have not won a title since capturing an NFL Championship in 1964. Two years later they came painfully close to ending it, when they were two outs away in Game 7 of the World Series, before the Marlins tied the game on a sacrifice fly and won in extra innings. The current Bengals team has shown an ability to play with anyone during the regular season. That's a big media market, large fan base and a team with lots of tradition, albeit a losing one, to have such a championship drought. It seems like training camp just opened, and we’ve already put another NFL regular season in the books. Cleveland's last World Series win dates back to 1948, and since that time the team has come up short in a few World Series. Comments Off on The 10 Longest Active Super Bowl/Championship Droughts in NFL History (Note: Totals are accurate through the end of the 2014 NFL regular season.) The current team with its problems at the quarterback position doesn't appear to be in the best position to break this championship drought. The Indians almost ended the drought with a World Series appearance in 1995. Buffalo has had its share of talented players through the years, but getting back to the Super Bowl includes making the playoffs first. Unique lists featuring pop culture, entertainment and crazy facts. The Red Sox championship drought lasted between 1918 and 2004, a period of 86 years before Boston finally broke the curse. Their most gut-wrenching losses include the 1998 NFC Championship, in which Gary Anderson missed a potential game-clinching field goal late and most recently, we saw the Vikings lose a heart breaker to the Saints in the 2009 NFC Championship, where Brett Favre threw a late interception and never got the ball in overtime. Since then, the franchise has endured six decades of losing seasons and the longest championship drought among active NFL franchises. The Nationals/Expos have never played in a World Series and have only been to the playoffs three times (1981, 2012, 2014). Across North America, fans don the jerseys of their favorite teams and flock to arenas and stadiums to see them play. News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. The Padres have had Tony Gwynn, Trevor Hoffman, Steve Garvey and Randy Jones and have even made two World Series appearances (1984, 1998), but have spent far more time staring up at the Giants and Dodgers in the NL West.
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