Others, meanwhile, are annually telling themselves Maybe next year just to repeat the cycle. Boston went 21 years without winning the NBA Finals from 1986-2007. 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. The following championships were included: Each sports season is referred to by the year that the season started. The Twins havent advanced past the LDS round since 02. The franchise will hope to find a new quarterback in 2023, someone who can finally take this team back to the playoffs. New York then lost in the Finals three times from 1999 to 2002. There are long-suffering franchises and fan bases across American sports. The longest currently active championship drought belongs to the city of Buffalo, who has gone 116 seasons without winning a championship. . The Kansas City Royals have a chance to end a 29-year wait for a second world title. After losing in the NBA Finals, the Boston Celtics have now gone 14 years without winning a title. Here is a look at the longest active championship droughts, all of which go back to at least 1998. Last Title: 1948 (74-year drought) The Guardians have been the kings of the MLB twice in their 122 seasons of play. The Magic faced the defending champion Houston Rockets who had struggled during the season, leading some to predict a Magic sweep. 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. As a one-sport city, Sacramento lives and dies by its Kings. For current droughts, Minnesota leads all states in the U.S. for the longest championship drought. 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 clubs 12 postseason appearances since beating the Boston Braves in the 1948 Fall Classic. 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. This list only shows droughts of 30 or more seasons for teams. 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. breaking their respective curses this century, the longest World Series drought now belongs to the Cleveland Guardians. 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. The team would move to Dallas in 1993, with the Minnesota Wild debuting in 2000. 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. They are one of 11 teams without an NBA championship. 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. The closest the Kings have come to an NBA title, however, was in 2002 when Kings played in their only Conference Finals since moving from Kansas City. The Magic returned to the Eastern Conference Finals the next season, losing to the Celtics 4-2. Teams that have never made it beyond each successive milestone are listed under the year in which they began NFL play. But the Red Sox swept the Rockies that year in the franchises closest title attempt. The . Note that for continuity purposes, the Cleveland Browns are officially considered to have suspended operations for the 1996, 1997, and 1998 seasons. No city currently compares to Clevelands legendary sports curse, but many pro sports markets have nonetheless seen lengthy championship droughts in recent years. Active droughts are listed in bold type. Your email address will not be published. src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=674090812743125&ev=PageView&noscript=1"/>. A championship appearance is listed as appearing in an NFL Championship (19321969), AFL Championship (19601969), or Super Bowl Championship (1966present). Longest playoff drought - New York Jets: With the Browns and Bucs both having made the playoffs in 2020, the Jets now own the longest drought, not having appeared in a postseason contest since the 2010 AFC Championship Game. Here are the U.S. and Canadian metros with the longest active championship droughts. Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) celebrates leading the Bucks to the NBA championship Tuesday night. 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. Cleveland has not won a title since 1948, but it has come close to winning one several times. For everything you need to know about Hulu, be sure to browse our Hulu + Live TV review. Since then the Bills have won only one playoff game the 1995 Wild Card game. Seattle then went 20 years without making it back to the postseason, but that streak is now over. Longest championship drought, by sport. It could be tantalizingly close misses, like the Buffalo Bills run of four straight Super Bowl losses in the 1990s. In 2003-04, the Panthers battled the Patriots in a shootout, with a Jake Delhomme touchdown pass evening the score at 29 with 1:08 to go. Which NFL team has the longest Super Bowl drought? The Toronto Maple Leafs have played 54 seasons since winning their last championship in the 1966-67 season. Here are the US and Canadian metros with the longest active championship droughts. By: Jill R. Dorson -. Its made just one Fall Classic, in '82, when the Brew Crew was unable to finish off a 3-2 lead against the Cardinals. 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. If the Titans had completed the comeback, it would have . In the event of a tie, the location with fewer total professional championships was ranked higher. This list only shows droughts of 30 or more seasons for teams. A Warner Bros. The Bucks have not won a series since then, although this year certainly looks promising. . Ultimately, they were passed over for another city with a similar drought, only this city has four teams rather than two. Buffalo, who has Since 1984, a drought has existed in the United States. No city currently compares to Clevelands legendary sports curse, but many pro sports markets have nonetheless seen lengthy championship droughts in recent years. 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. Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald came within a minute of ending that streak in 2007, but a six-yard Santonio . Only locations with at least one currently active professional sports team were considered in the analysis. During this championship season Chuck Bednarik hit Frank Gifford so hard he didn't wake up until he was in the "Monday Night Football" booth. The modern Ottawa Senators did not begin. The Bucks were in their third year as a franchise and were led by MVP Kareen Abdul-Jabbar in his second season, Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson and the great power forward Bob Dandridge. For more information, check out our comprehensive FuboTV review. Theyve made it twice total since last winning in 1984. 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. 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. The Kings had a mini-dynasty under Coach Rick Adelman from 1997-2006 making the playoffs 8 consecutive years, including winning back-to-back Pacific division titles in 2002-2003. Following the 2021-22 NBA season, Sacramento has missed the playoff in 16 consecutive seasons. Since then the Twins have only advanced as far as the ALCS once (2002). Buffalo is the nations 50th largest metropolitan area with a 2017 population of 1,136,856. Thanks to the Capitals, Detroit has now moved up the list of cities with the longest-running title droughts. Minnesota's dry spell extends nearly 25 years, all the way back to . 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 Detroit Red Wings brought the last major championship home to the Motor City ten . For current droughts, Minnesota leads all states in the U.S. for the longest championship drought. Kansas City's last three playoff losses have come by a total of nine points a freak 18-16 loss to Pittsburgh in a divisional game after the 2016 season, a 22-21 loss to the Tennessee Titans after the 2017 season and a 37-31 overtime loss to the New England Patriots in the . For many of these teams, these streaks of decades without a championship extend beyond one generation. Even with four total franchises between Nashville and Memphis, the state has never won a professional sports title in 25 years. Since then, the team has used four different names and reached just two conference finals . Shoutout to the city of Winnipeg, where there's never been a division title in the NHL, but the . How to Stream Without Cable, Why Sports Matter to Cable Subscribers: One-Third May Cancel If NFL is Postponed. Still, 15 of the 30 teams have gone at least the past 25 seasons -- since MLB's most recent expansion in 1998 -- without winning the World Series. The Cleveland Browns are tied for the second-longest conference championship game drought at 29 years. Neither team has been crowned the NHLs champions since entering the league in 1970. Padres: 54 seasons (No titles)An expansion team in 1969, San Diego has yet to bring home a title. The Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks are the other NHL teams to go 50-plus years without winning the Stanley Cup. gone 116 seasons without winning a championship. Longest NFL / AFL / Super Bowl championship appearance droughts through history. The data was sourced from pro-football-reference.com, basketball-reference.com, baseball-reference.com, hockey-reference.com, and fbref.com. Your email address will not be published. The Sabres made it to the Conference Finals in 2006 and 2007, but have not won a playoff series since then. Cleveland Guardians (MLB) - 73 years. Sacramento Kings - 1951. This is a sortable table of all 32 current NFL teams. Your email address will not be published. In their last appearance, the Vikings were playing for a chance to play in the Super Bowl to be held in Minneapolis. Minnesota (Minneapolis/St. They have not won a playoff series since then. 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. One of the NHLs Original Six organizations has gone over five decades without lifting the Cup. 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. 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. This Shaq would leave for the Lakers the next season and it would not be until 2008-2009 that the Magic would return to the conference finals. Meanwhile, the Denver Broncos playoff drought extended to seven seasons. Last championship in the city: New York Giants (2012), or for Brooklyn specifically, the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Salt Lake City has only one active team, the, The most recent championship for Montreal was the, There have been no championships in Sacramento history. Mike Bibbys game-winning shot in Game 5 put them up 3-2 over the Los Angeles Lakers. Cincinnati is the 29th largest metropolitan area with a 2017 population of 2,179,082. 9. Then Hulu started and he was hooked. After the Maple Leafs, the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks share the second-longest Cup drought at 51 years. The Sacramento Kings have a historic playoff drought to go along with their historic championship drought. Updated with completion of NFL season ending in 2023. San Diego is the nations 17th largest metropolitan area with a 2017 population of 3,337,685. Orlando has only one active team, the, The most recent championship for Calgary was the, The most recent championship for Indianapolis was the, The most recent championship for Edmonton was the, There have been no championships in San Jose history. Frank Moraes is Content Editor at HotDog.com. The City of Minneapolis (1991-Present): No Minneapolis franchise has claimed a championship in 25 years, excluding three, maybe four WNBA titles . When the Cubs won the World Series in 2016, they ended a 108-year drought and broke one of baseball's most famous curses. The Sacramento skyline, as seen fromThe ZigguratinWest Sacramento, California. 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. It would take the Sabres 24 years to return to the Stanley Cup Finals where they faced the Dallas Stars in 1999. The Kings haven't won a Stanley Cup . Very little work got done in 2008. The Colorado Avalanche last won the Stanley Cup in 2001. Led by quarterback Stan Humphries, the Chargers came back from a 13-3 deficit to win 17-13. Since then, the team has used four different names and reached just two conference finals, losing both. Nashville became a major league city in 1998 when the NFLs Tennessee Oilers moved from Memphis (they became the Titans the following season) and the Nashville Predators debuted as an NHL expansion team. It is the largest city on the list and the only one with teams in all major leagues. But their quest to give the city of San Diego its first World Series crown ended when the Phillies beat them in five games. After Kareems Sky Hook gave the Bucks a dramatic overtime win in Boston in Game 6 sending the series back to Milwaukee, a second title seemed assured. But there is one important caveat: most of these cities have not had pro sports franchises for very long. Of course, the Cardinals arent the only franchise with a championship drought beyond 50 years. Here are the longest championship droughts in the four major American professional sports. semi-final defeat to a Manchester City side headed . Colorado has yet to capture an NL West division title. . Cleveland last won a championship 69 years ago, in 1948. 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 . But the team has had its stars -- including Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau and Johan Santana -- who led Minnesota to six AL Central titles from 2002-10 before the club suffered early postseason exits. They have not made the playoffs since then. Longest championship title droughts in NBA history. 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. Today, he streams pretty much everything while his library of thousands of Blu-rays and DVDs collects dust. 2. Required fields are marked *. 1. Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports. After that, the T-Wolves proceeded to miss the playoffs for 13 straight seasons until last year. The Detroit Lions, are one of seven teams without a Super Bowl win. Your email address will not be published. Each season begins with optimism across the 30 MLB fanbases, and each one ends with some level of disappointment for 29 of them. 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. 1. 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. The NFL then gave the title to the Cardinals. Having played more seasons naturally makes it more likely that a team would win a championship at some point. Here are the longest title droughts among the remaining NBA playoff teams, starting with the longest. They also won the pennant in 2006, when they lost in five games to the 83-win Cardinals. Padres fans can take comfort in the fact that the Yankees were simply that good, as they began a 10-game World Series winning streak as the Yankees also swept the Atlanta Braves in 1999 and beat the New York Mets (4-1) in 2000. The Las Vegas Aces organization also has never won an WNBA title in its 25-year history. The 2007-08 Celtics rolled to a stop-the-insanity 131-92 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 6 of the NBA Finals on June 17, 2008, after which no Boston team would win a championship until . "Hotdog" is a registered trademark of Incognito Mode LLC. 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. A citys sports misfortunes can come in different forms. Whether curses are to blame or just bad management and worse luck, fans put up with a lot. 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. The Arizona Cardinals have the longest championship drought in the NFL, with their last title coming in 1947 as the Chicago Cardinals. Buffalos drought tops the next-highest city by nine years, and only two other cities besides Buffalo have championship droughts longer than 50 years. In 2016-17 they claimed the final playoff spot in the Western Conference and then swept the top-seeded Chicago Blackhawks and then beat the St. Louis Blues (4-2) and Anaheim Ducks (4-2) to reach the Stanley Cup Final for the first time. Jabbar played only one more season with the Bucks, but the franchise found new life in the 1980s under Coach Don Nelson with 7-straight 50-win seasons and three trips to the Eastern Conference Finals only to face dynastic Philadelphia and Boston teams. With spring training having begun in baseball and basketball and hockey seasons ramping up towards the playoffs towards, hope springs eternal for dedicated fans. Winning a championship, regardless of league, is no easy feat. And some of these droughts are especially surprising. The Bucks lost in seven games to the Allen Iverson-led Philadelphia 76ers in a series that some believe was rigged in Philadelphias favor.