The team has two WNBA Finals appearances in its history: 2008 and 2020. Its made just one Fall Classic, in '82, when the Brew Crew was unable to finish off a 3-2 lead against the Cardinals. The Bucs only three postseason appearances since then (2013-15) all fell short of the NLCS. In 2001, the NBAs Vancouver Grizzlies moved to Memphis after six seasons and a dismal 101-359 (.219) record. Only metros with at least one active NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, or MLS team were considered. After losing in the NBA Finals, the Boston Celtics have now gone 14 years without winning a title. One of the NHLs Original Six organizations has gone over five decades without lifting the Cup. As for the Detroit Lions, they can end their playoff drought and earn the No. Tom Brady, however, drove the Patriots 37 yards to set up the game-winning Adam Vinatieri 41 yard field goal. A championship is listed as winning an NFL Championship (19201969), AFL Championship (19601969), and Super Bowl Championship (1966present). Led by quarterback Stan Humphries, the Chargers came back from a 13-3 deficit to win 17-13. 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. The Bucks swept through the NBA playoffs beating Nate Thurmond and the San Francisco Warriors (4-1), Wilt Chamberlain and the Los Angeles Lakers (4-1) and sweeping Wes Unseld and the Baltimore Bullets. For more information, check out our comprehensive FuboTV review. 2. What is the longest championship drought ever? 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. Kansas City Royals - 6 years. This And in some cases, it could be all of a citys sports franchises struggling simultaneously, like in Cleveland, which experienced a 52-year championship drought from the Browns 1964 NFL title to the Cavaliers 2016 NBA championship. June 20, 2016 2:16 pm. 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. The city of Los Angeles has the longest championship drought of any NBA city. Buffalo has been home to the NFLs Buffalo Bills, the NHLs Buffalo Sabres and the NBAs Buffalo Bison (now Atlanta Hawks) and Buffalo Braves (now Los Angeles Clippers). 4:20 PM EDT, Sun October 23, 2016. Memphis has only one active team, the, The most recent championship for Baltimore was the, The most recent championship for Philadelphia was the, The most recent championship for Seattle was the, The most recent championship for Cleveland was the, The most recent championship for Raleigh was the, The most recent championships for Boston were the, The most recent championship for Pittsburgh was the, There have been no championships in Oklahoma City history. The Padres were the last San Diego team with a shot at a title. We recommend (And use!) Buffalos drought tops the next-highest city by nine years, and only two other cities besides Buffalo have championship droughts longer than 50 years. Things looked promising after they took a 7-0 on their first drive, but then the Philadelphia Eagles shut them down en route to a 38-7 win. (See Unfilled Dynasties: The Bucks Stop Here.). Your email address will not be published. Here are the U.S. and Canadian metros with the longest active championship droughts. Of course, the Cardinals arent the only franchise with a championship drought beyond 50 years. Additionally, each location must have had at least one professional sports team operating in all years of its championship drought for that losing streak to count. It could be a decades-long, mythic streak of losing, like the 86- and 108-year World Series droughts of the Boston Red Sox (ended in 2004) and the Chicago Cubs (ended in 2016). Winning a championship, regardless of league, is no easy feat. NFL: Arizona Cardinals: 70 years: . Photo Credit: The Speedy Butterfly / Shutterstock, Photo Credit: Natalia Pushchina / Shutterstock, Photo Credit: nikitsin.smugmug.com / Shutterstock, Photo Credit: Songquan Deng / Shutterstock, Photo Credit: Andriy Blokhin / Shutterstock, Photo Credit: Christopher Penler / Shutterstock, Photo Credit: Richard Cavalleri / Shutterstock. Which NBA team has the longest championship drought? breaking their respective curses this century, the longest World Series drought now belongs to the Cleveland Guardians. There were World Series chances in '84 and 98, but the Padres won just one Fall Classic game in those years against the Tigers and Yankees, respectively. The Sacramento skyline, as seen fromThe ZigguratinWest Sacramento, California. Check out our Cyber Monday Shoppers Guide! While the 2022 Stanley Cup finals wont wipe out one of the longest championship droughts, a streak of 20 consecutive years without hoisting of Lord Stanleys Cup, aka The Holy Grail of Hockey, came to an end. Ultimately, they were passed over for another city with a similar drought, only this city has four teams rather than two. After consecutive first-round losses in 2005 and 2006, the Kings fired Adelman despite a .633 win percentage over 8 years. The Buffalo Bills won AFL championships in 1964 and 1965 prior to Super Bowls between the two football leagues. appreciated. Related: MLB power rankings 2022 Houston Astros, New York Yankees battle for No.1 spot. Since then they have had only 7 winning seasons and 4 playoff appearances, never getting past the second round (most recently in 2017-18 when they lost 34-14 to the defending champion New England Patriots). Jim Hart is the only QB in team history that fits the bill. Active droughts are listed in bold type. Its one thing to never hoist the championship trophy and witness a parade, but not even experiencing the brief second of joy from a playoff game makes rooting for teams even more painful. Milwaukees only championships in the modern era are from the 1957 Milwaukee Braves and the 1971 Milwaukee Bucks. For example, Canadathe birthplace of hockeyis home to seven cities with NHL franchises, but none of them have brought home a Stanley Cup in the last 30 years. The modern Ottawa Senators did not begin. In 1995, Charlotte became home to the NFL Panthers who have had much greater success, including making it to the NFC Championship game in their second year. You can see his writing on low-budget and weird film at, Cities With the Longest Active Championship Droughts, Metros With the Longest Active Championship Droughts, Cities With the Most Professional Sports Championships, Cities With the Longest NBA Championship Droughts of All Time. 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. Since then, the team has used four different names and reached just two conference finals . The Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, Tennessee Titans. 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. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Since then the Bills have won only one playoff game - the 1995 Wild Card game. 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. The defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins won the series 4-2. Which WNBA team has the longest championship drought? The Twins havent advanced past the LDS round since 02. They also won the pennant in 2006, when they lost in five games to the 83-win Cardinals. But cities that have been awarded franchises recently have an additional disadvantage, because there are now more teams to compete against than in earlier years. Shoutout to the city of Winnipeg, where there's never been a division title in the NHL, but the . Contact Frank with thoughts, questions, and story ideas at [emailprotected]. A citys sports misfortunes can come in different forms. (See The Vikings: Tale of Glory and Doom.). . Projected by many as a contender entering the season, Russell Wilson regressed and Nathaniel Hackett didnt make it a full season before he was fired. Of course, some have it worse than others. 12. Full List Of Super Bowl Champions Longest Super Bowl Droughts Longest NFL Playoff Droughts Longest NFL Playoff Win Droughts All Time Best NFL Regular Seasons All Time Worst NFL Regular Seasons Most Consecutive NFL Seasons With Winning Records Most Consecutive NFL Seasons With Losing Records Most Consecutive NFL Seasons Making The Playoffs . Which NHL team has the longest Stanley Cup drought? San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA. Of those 12, they have the longest championship victory or appearance drought. Nashville is the nations 36th largest metropolitan area with a 2017 population of 1,903,045. This list only shows droughts of 30 or more seasons for teams. As a one-sport city, Sacramento lives and dies by its Kings. Tennessee Titans. Phoenix Suns - 53 years. The Bucks lost in seven games to the Allen Iverson-led Philadelphia 76ers in a series that some believe was rigged in Philadelphias favor. While the Rays made the postseason for the fourth straight season in 2022, they fell to the Guardians in the Wild Card Series. "Hotdog" is a registered trademark of Incognito Mode LLC. The Panthers have reached the Super Bowl twice. The City of Minneapolis (1991-Present): No Minneapolis franchise has claimed a championship in 25 years, excluding three, maybe four WNBA titles . There are long-suffering franchises and fan bases across American sports. 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. The NFL's longest current drought is held by the Oakland Raiders, who have not won a championship since 1972. Time flies by and those same fans are capturing their children and even grandchildren in that same feeling. A good VPN provides extra security and unequalled privacy for everything you do online. Manchester United are middle of the pack when it comes to the longest trophy droughts ever suffered by the 20 current Premier League clubs. Advertisement. Only locations . Longest NFL / AFL / Super Bowl championship appearance droughts through history. Mike Bibbys game-winning shot in Game 5 put them up 3-2 over the Los Angeles Lakers. Which teams have the longest championship droughts? The Magic faced the defending champion Houston Rockets who had struggled during the season, leading some to predict a Magic sweep. Fans growing up as children hoping desperately to see their favorite club they were raised to support one day lift the banner declaring the champions. , Cleveland Browns and Buffalo Bills are the other franchises that were in existence before the Super Bowl era that have yet to take home the Lombardi Trophy. All NFL championships since the NFL was founded in 1920 were included; all NBA championships since the NBA was founded in 1946 were included; all World Series were included, dating back to 1903; all NHL championships since the NHL was founded in 1917 were included; and all MLS championships since MLSs first season in 1996 were included. Three more MLB teams have World Series droughts that extend 50-plus years: the. Sacramento Kings 16 seasons (last playoff . semi-final defeat to a Manchester City side headed . Here is a look at the longest active championship droughts, all of which go back to at least 1998. While it was a finalist in MLBs 1993 and 1998 expansion, it got overlooked in favor of Miami and Tampa Bay. Pirates: 43 seasons (Last title in 1979)Only six franchises have won more championships than Pittsburgh (five), but its been a rough road for the franchise since Barry Bonds departure following a heartbreaking loss in Game 7 of the 1992 NLCS. The Blue Jays' drought continued to grow in 2022 after they lost in the Wild Card Series to the Mariners. AMAZON -- HotDog.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a way for websites to earn advertising revenues by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Having played more seasons naturally makes it more likely that a team would win a championship at some point. For these teams, its practically impossible. New York then lost in the Finals three times from 1999 to 2002. If you value privacy, security, and access, you need a quality VPN. With the Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs breaking their respective curses this century, the longest World Series drought now belongs to the Cleveland Guardians. Though no other American sports franchise has reached the century mark for years without a title, there . 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. Meanwhile, the New York Rangers are now at a 27-year championship drought. And some of these droughts are especially surprising. We see many teams continuing their hist. The Bobcats, however, do have the distinction of having the worst record in NBA history in the strike-shortened 2012 season when they went a horrid 7-59 (.106). . Its been just as long since the team even reached the Stanley Cup Final, losing in five conference finals over that stretch. 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. Far more importantly, New York is in the playoffs for the first time since Ben McAdoo was the head coach, bringing an end to the Giants five-year playoff drought. 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. A handful of teams have finally gotten over the hump in recent years and ended decade-long and, in a few cases, century-long curses. In 1990, the Cincinnati Reds swept the favored Oakland As for their 5th World Series Championship. Sacramento is the 27th largest metropolitan area with a 2017 population of 2,324,884. With C-Town now anointed NBA champions, let's . Tennessee also stands out for its pro sports struggles. Minnesota United has yet to make the playoffs in two seasons of play in the MLS. Further ties were broken by the team with the most active professional sports franchises. Some believe a curse is a reason for this title drought. The Bucks have not won a series since then, although this year certainly looks promising. Cleveland last won a championship 69 years ago, in 1948. Among teams that have never won a title, the Phoenix Suns have the longest drought at 54 seasons. The franchise was originally based in Los Angeles, but moved to Oakland prior to the 1982 season. The Philadelphia Phillies snuck into the postseason thanks to the added No. Unfortunately, the wheels have fallen off in recent decades. In the 67 years since their last title, the . The Rochester Royals, now known as the Sacramento Kings, won the NBA Finals in 1951. The Reds have been 2-11 in its four post-season appearances since then and has finished in last or next to last 11 times including the last five seasons. 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). For current droughts, Minnesota leads all states in the US for the longest championship drought. Only streaks with consecutive years of professional sports operating within a location were considered. For everything you need to know about Hulu, be sure to browse our Hulu + Live TV review. This list also counts all seasons since a team last won the league championship. After the Cav's NBA championship last night, the city that's endured the most seasons without a major sport championship is San Diego. Total professional sports championships: 18. The Queen City is home to the MLBs Cincinnati Reds, NFLs Cincinnati Bengals and MLS FC Cincinnati (debuting this season) and was once home to the NBAs Cincinnati Royals (now Sacramento Kings) and the World Hockey Associations Cincinnati Stingers. Buffalo is the nations 50th largest metropolitan area with a 2017 population of 1,136,856. Listed according to seasons waited. In this installment, we cover the 10 cities who have not seen a championship in 20 years or more in any major sport San Diego, Buffalo, Milwaukee, Sacramento, Charlotte, Orlando, Cincinnati, the Twin Cities, Jacksonville, and Nashville. It could be tantalizingly close misses, like the Buffalo Bills run of four straight Super Bowl losses in the 1990s. In that span since the 1984 title, theyve also found themselves on the precipice of the World Series three additional times -- losing the ALCS in 2013, 2011 and 1987. For example, Canada the birthplace of hockey is home to seven cities with NHL franchises, but none of them have brought home a Stanley Cup in the last 30 years. 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. It also has struggled with its back against the wall. The As most recent ALCS appearance resulted in a sweep by the Tigers in 06. The Cleveland Browns are tied for the second-longest conference championship game drought at 29 years. But there is one important caveat: most of these cities have not had pro sports franchises for very long. Rockies: 30 seasons (No titles)Colorado had all the momentum in 2007, when "Rocktober" swept Denver and the team won eight straight postseason games and the NL pennant after prevailing over the Padres in a Game 163. The Braves had been one of those teams entering the 2021 season, but they became the latest team to end a lengthy drought by clinching their first title since 1995 by beating the Astros to take home the 2021 World Series trophy that fall. In 2015, the MLS added Orlando FC, which has yet to qualify for the playoffs. 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. The Bills lost all four Super Bowls, with the closest one being in the 1990-91 season when Scott Norwoods potential game-winning 47-yard field goal attempt with 8-seconds remaining was wide by a foot. Further ties were broken by the team with the most active professional sports franchises. Cyber Monday is coming with lots of deals on the things cord-cutters want and need from top providers like Hulu, ExpressVPN and NordVPN. Buffalos drought tops the next-highest city by nine years, and only two other cities besides Buffalo have championship droughts longer than 50 years. The longest currently active championship drought belongs to the city of Buffalo, who has gone 116 seasons without winning a championship. Only locations with at least one currently active professional sports team were considered in the analysis. The Mariners have gone 20 years without reaching the MLB playoffs, it is the longest active postseason drought in the top four American mens sports. Current NFL cities/regions only. The other seven clubs (Cardinals, Lions, Oilers/Titans, Chargers, Browns, Bills, and Vikings) all won an NFL or AFL championship prior to the AFLNFL merger; in the case of the Vikings, however, the Super Bowl existed at the time they won their only league title (in 1969), leaving them and the Falcons as the only two teams to have never won the highest championship available to them. There are long-suffering franchises and fan bases across American sports. 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. Check out our VPN Guide for everything you need to know, including our top pick ExpressVPN. Once part of the NFL, the Chargers made it to the AFC Championship Game four times: (i) losing to the Oakland Raiders 34-27 in 1980-81; (ii) losing 27-7 to Cincinnati in the famous Freezer Bowl in 1981-82; (iii)losing to the undefeated Patriots 21-12 in 2007-08; and (iv) then there was the 1994-95 season. The Game 1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals also represented the Phillies first playoff victory since Game 3 in the 2011 NLDS on Oct. 4, 2011. They returned to the AFC Championship in 2002-03, losing to the Oakland Raiders 41-24. For current droughts, Minnesota leads all states in the U.S. for the longest championship drought. Since the Chargers won the 1963 AFL championship, the Chargers, Padres, Clippers and Rockets have played a combined 109 seasons without a championship among them. That 10-year drought is twice as long as anyone else in the NFL, as the Cardinals, Bengals and Broncos have all most . DID YOU KNOW?FuboTV offers 38+ sports-oriented channels, which is why it might be the best option for live TV for sports fans. Charlotte is the 22nd largest metropolitan area and has a 2017 population of 2,525,305. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much The Detroit Red Wings brought the last major championship home to the Motor City ten . . At the metro level, one city currently stands out for the length of time without a professional sports title. The team was an original WNBA team as the Utah Starzz starting in 1997 before turning into the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2003 and the Aces in 2018. During this period, the Minnesota Vikings have lost in the NFC Championship four times (1998, 2000, 2009 and 2017). Longest championship drought, by sport. Abdul-Jabbar led the Bucks back to the NBA Finals in 1974 against the Boston Celtics. No city currently compares to Clevelands legendary sports curse, but many pro sports markets have nonetheless seen lengthy championship droughts in recent years. The Buffalo Sabres made it to the Stanley Cup Finals in only their 5th season in 1974-75, led by Hall of Fame Center Gilbert Perreault They lost to the defending champion Philadelphia Flyers 4-2, who clinched Game 6 in Buffalo with a 2-0 win. The second came in 1948 with manager Lou Boudreau calling the shots and Bob Lemon and Bob Feller manning the mound. Charlotte has been a professional city since 1988 when the NBA expanded with the Charlotte Hornets. Led by Dwight Howard, the Magic stunned LeBron James and the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in six games. However, they were stripped of the title and the Maroons were suspended by the NFL for playing an exhibition game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Sacramento has only one active team, the, The most recent championship for Miami was the, The most recent championship for Ottawa was the, There have been no championships in Orlando history. Frank loves video. The Wild has reached the Conference Finals only once getting swept by the Anaheim Ducks in 2003. Following the 2021-22 NBA season, Sacramento has missed the playoff in 16 consecutive seasons. Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports. The Browns last appeared in the AFC Championship Game during the 1989 season when they fell . After the Kings, the Atlanta Hawks hold the next-longest championship drought, which extends back to 1958. No city currently compares to Clevelands legendary sports curse, but many pro sports markets have nonetheless seen lengthy championship droughts in recent years. Longest championship title droughts in NBA history. The Cardinals have the longest active title drought in the NFL (last title: 1947) and one of the longest droughts without a franchise QB. Locations were attributed championships for championships won by teams that were branded to be from the location at the time that they won the championship. Researchers at HotDog.com ranked US and Canadian metropolitan areas according to active professional sports championship droughts, including the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and MLS. Only metros with at least one active NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, or MLS team were considered. Welcome to SportsHistory!Today we took look at every single NFL team's championship drought and ranked them in order! Five Pro Sports Cities in a Championship Drought That Deserve a Ring. New Orleans Saints (1967-2010): . The Kings haven't won a Stanley Cup . Around a quarter (25.5%) have never won a championship, but one important caveat is that most of these cities have not had pro sports franchises for very long. Of course, we saw two of the longest MLB playoff droughts end this year. Since 1984, a drought has existed in the United States. Ten teams have multiple losing streaks where they lost an equal number of post season games before breaking the drought. Active droughts are listed in bold type. We have seen one of the longest Stanley Cup droughts end in recent years. Sacramento has quite a playoff drought going, as it last reached . Padres: 54 seasons (No titles)An expansion team in 1969, San Diego has yet to bring home a title. After snapping one of the longest playoff droughts in MLB, the Phillies made it back to the World Series for the first time since 2009. Teams With Longest Championship and Playoff Droughts 2019 Edition Trophy Lives, Seattle Kraken Set NHL Record With 7-0 Road Trip, Dec-23-79: Bruins-Rangers Donnybrook at MSG, England France Meet in World Cup For Only Third Time, First Elimination Round Match. 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. The T-Wolves fell 4-2 to the defending champions Los Angeles Lakers. Under Coach Tom Coughlin, the Jaguars were a remarkably successful expansion franchise. When the Cubs won the World Series in 2016, they ended a 108-year drought and broke one of baseball's most famous curses. San Diego is the nations 17th largest metropolitan area with a 2017 population of 3,337,685.