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 city’s sports misfortunes can come in different forms. 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). It could be tantalizingly close misses, like the Buffalo Bills’ run of four straight Super Bowl losses in the 1990s.
And in some cases, it could be all of a city’s 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.
Table Of Contents
No city currently compares to Cleveland’s legendary sports curse, but many pro sports markets have nonetheless seen lengthy championship droughts in recent years. And some of these droughts are especially surprising.
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.
Most Cities Have Recent Championships
Most cities, however, have tasted recent success in a major sport in one form or another. Over the last 25 years, 62.7% of cities have won a championship in either the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, or MLS.
Around a quarter (25.5%) have never won a championship. But there is one important caveat: most of these cities have not had pro sports franchises for very long. 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.
Having played more seasons naturally makes it more likely that a team would win a championship at some point. 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.
LEARN MORE
Sports fans will be glad to know that Hulu + Live TV streamers can also select their favorite teams to watch live from six different sports leagues across five different sports. For everything you need to know about Hulu, be sure to browse our Hulu + Live TV review.
Stream Secure and Unconstrained With a VPN
A good VPN provides extra security and unequalled privacy for everything you do online. It’s also an essential tool for getting the most out of your streaming services. Check out our VPN Guide for everything you need to know, including our top pick ExpressVPN.
.
Other brands worth checking out include Hotspot Shield and CyberGhost.
State Droughts
For current droughts, Minnesota leads all states in the US for the longest championship drought. 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 MLB’s Twins won in 1991.
Tennessee also stands out for its pro sports struggles. Even with four total franchises between Nashville and Memphis, the state has never won a professional sports title in 25 years.
City Droughts
At the metro level, one city currently stands out for the length of time without a professional sports title. Between the NHL’s Sabres (established 1970) and the NFL’s Bills (established 1960), Buffalo has never experienced a sports championship in 62 years of having teams.
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.
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 locations with at least one currently active professional sports team were considered in the analysis.
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.
Supercharge Your Online Life With a VPN
If you value privacy, security, and access, you need a quality VPN. It has been an essential part of our streaming toolkit for years. We recommend (And use!) ExpressVPN. Other brands worth checking out include Hotspot Shield and CyberGhost.
| i | See our VPN Buyer’s Guide for complete information on how to choose the best VPN for your needs. |
Metros With the Longest Active Championship Droughts
Here are the US and Canadian metros with the longest active championship droughts.
15. Memphis, TN-MS-AR
- Active championship drought: 21 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 1
14. Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN
- Active championship drought: 25 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 3
DID YOU KNOW?
FuboTV offers 38+ sports-oriented channels, which is why it might be the best option for live TV for sports fans. For more information, check out our comprehensive FuboTV review.
13. Jacksonville, FL
- Active championship drought: 27 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 1
12. Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC
- Active championship drought: 27 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 3
11. Montreal, QC
- Active championship drought: 30 years
- Most recent championship team: Montreal Canadiens (1992)
- Total professional sports championships: 25
- Total active professional sports franchises: 2
10. Ottawa-Gatineau, ON-QC
- Active championship drought: 30 years
- Most recent championship team: Ottawa Senators (1926)
- Total professional sports championships: 4
- Total active professional sports franchises: 1
9. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
- Active championship drought: 31 years
- Most recent championship team: Minnesota Twins (1991)
- Total professional sports championships: 7
- Total active professional sports franchises: 5
8. Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN
- Active championship drought: 32 years
- Most recent championship team: Cincinnati Reds (1990)
- Total professional sports championships: 5
- Total active professional sports franchises: 3
7. Edmonton, AB
- Active championship drought: 33 years
- Most recent championship team: Edmonton Oilers (1989)
- Total professional sports championships: 5
- Total active professional sports franchises: 1
6. Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL
- Active championship drought: 33 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 2
Cyber Monday is coming with lots of deals on the things cord-cutters want and need from top providers like Hulu, ExpressVPN and NordVPN. Check out our Cyber Monday Shopper’s Guide!
5. Calgary, AB
- Active championship drought: 34 years
- Most recent championship team: Calgary Flames (1988)
- Total professional sports championships: 1
- Total active professional sports franchises: 1
4. Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA
- Active championship drought: 37 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 1
3. Vancouver, BC
- Active championship drought: 52 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 2
2. San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
- Active championship drought: 53 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 1
1. Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY
- Active championship drought: 62 years
- Most recent championship team: N/A
- Total professional sports championships: 0
- Total active professional sports franchises: 2
Methodology and Detailed Findings
Researchers at HotDog.com ranked US and Canadian metropolitan areas according to active professional sports championship droughts. Locations were attributed wins for championships won by teams that were branded to be from the location at the time it took place.
The following championships were included:
- NFL from 1920
- NBA from 1946
- MLB from 1903
- NHL from 1917
- MLS from 1996.
Each sports season is referred to by the year that the season started. Only metros with at least one active NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, or MLS team were considered. Only streaks with consecutive years of professional sports operating within a location were considered.
In the event of a tie, the location with fewer total professional championships was ranked higher. Further ties were broken by the team with the most active professional sports franchises.
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
Ditch “Big Cable” Now – 3 Simple Steps to Cut the Cord
- Pick the right streaming service
- Get the content you deserve with the best VPN.
- Supercharge your internet provider
That’s it — you’ll save money, take back control, and enjoy TV more!
Page Updates ▼▲
-
Updated some sub-sections. Updated some section headings. Image changes.
-
Added some more links. Changed a few bits of content.
-
Additional links. Misc changes.
-
Added new section. Updated one section. Put related links. Mentioned offers.
-
States That Have Produced the Best Actors and Actresses - 09/06/2022 -
Exclusive Sports on Hulu + Live TV - 07/24/2022 -
Just How Good Is Hulu + Live TV’s Local TV Coverage? - 07/03/2022
0 replies on “Cities With the Longest Active Championship Droughts ”
The Buffalo Bills won AFL championships in 1964 and 1965 prior to Super Bowls between the two football leagues. To say Buffalo never won a championship is debatable. But if you’re not going to count those as championships then you have to start counting years with the start of Super Bowls.