Drought (sport)

In sports, a drought refers to instances in which an individual or team has gone through a lengthy period of time without accomplishing some goal. For a team, this usually refers to an extended period of time without making the playoffs or winning a championship. Droughts occur for a variety of reasons, from chronic mismanagement to bad luck. Some droughts are also popularly attributed to a curse.

North America

Droughts by sport

• In MLB, the Chicago Cubs suffered a 108 year World Series drought from 1908 until 2016, when they defeated the Cleveland Indians. In turn, the Indians inherited the longest active drought, last winning the World Series in 1948.
  Further information: List of Major League Baseball franchise postseason droughts
• In the NHL, the longest current title drought is shared by two teams: the Toronto Maple Leafs, who have not won the Stanley Cup (or even appeared in the Cup Finals) since 1967, and the St. Louis Blues, who entered the league when it doubled in size the following season, and have not yet won the Cup.
  Further information: List of NHL franchise post-season droughts
• In the NFL, four teams have never appeared in a Super Bowl (the Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans), and nine other teams have never won that game. The longest active title drought is that of the Arizona Cardinals franchise, which last won an NFL championship in the 1947 season. The Cardinals have played home games in four different cities in three market areas since the team last won a title: Chicago, St. Louis, and the Phoenix suburbs of Tempe and Glendale.
  Further information: List of NFL franchise post-season droughts
• 12 NBA teams have never won a championship. The league's longest drought belongs to the Sacramento Kings, who have not won the championship or even been to the NBA Finals since 1951, when they were known as the Rochester Royals. Sacramento is the fifth different city to host the team since it last won a title (Rochester, Cincinnati, Kansas City, and Omaha are the others).
  Further information: List of NBA franchise post-season droughts
• In the CFL, the longest continuous and current Grey Cup drought is held by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers at 26 years. The Blue Bombers last won the 78th Grey Cup in 1990 when they beat the Edmonton Eskimos 50-11.
• In Major League Soccer (MLS), the longest current MLS Cup drought is 20 years, held by three teams, the New England Revolution, New York Red Bulls, and FC Dallas, as each team has failed to win the league title despite having competed in every MLS season dating back to 1996. All have made MLS Cup Final appearances (Dallas lost to the Colorado Rapids in MLS Cup 2010, New York lost to the Columbus Crew in MLS Cup 2008, and New England lost to the Los Angeles Galaxy in MLS Cup 2002, MLS Cup 2005, and MLS Cup 2014 and to the Houston Dynamo in MLS Cup 2006 and MLS Cup 2007). Orlando City SC, New York City FC, Montreal Impact, Philadelphia Union, Seattle Sounders FC, Toronto FC, and Vancouver Whitecaps FC have also never won an MLS Cup title, but were added as expansion teams subsequent to 1996. Defunct teams CD Chivas USA, Miami Fusion FC and Tampa Bay Mutiny never won the MLS Cup before they were shut down.
• With regard to other major domestic trophies, the longest active Supporters Shield drought is shared by two teams, the Colorado Rapids and the New England Revolution. Neither has won a Supporters Shield despite competing in every MLS season since 1996. Among MLS teams, the longest Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup drought is 20 years, shared by three teams, the Colorado Rapids, New York Red Bulls, and San Jose Earthquakes. Four other current United States-based teams have not won the Open Cup (Houston Dynamo, Philadelphia Union, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake), but were added as expansion teams after 1996. The three Canada-based MLS teams, Montreal Impact, Toronto FC, and Vancouver Whitecaps FC are ineligible as they compete in the Voyageurs Cup.
• Canadian teams have gone 199 seasons without a championship. Their last was in 1993 when the Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup and the Toronto Blue Jays won the World Series. To the end of the 2016 MLB season, Canadian teams have participated in 199 seasons of championship play (in the NHL, 22 each for Toronto, Ottawa, Edmonton, Vancouver, Montreal and Calgary, 6 for Winnipeg and 2 for Quebec City; in the NBA, 21 for Toronto and 6 for Vancouver; in MLB 22 for Toronto and 10 for Montreal). They are a cumulative 0-for-199.

Drought prone cities

Several North American cities are believed to have championship droughts among their "Big Four" pro sports teams:

• 53 years – San Diego since 1963 AFL title (pre-Super Bowl, lost 1995 Super Bowl), no World Series title (lost 1984 and 1998 World Series finals), no NBA title (Clippers relocated to Los Angeles in 1984)
• 51 years – Buffalo since 1965 AFL title (pre-Super Bowl, lost 1991-1994 Super Bowls), no Stanley Cup title since joining NHL in 1970–71 (lost 1999 Stanley Cup final), no NBA title (Braves relocated to San Diego in 1978).
• 46 years – Vancouver no Stanley Cups since joining NHL in 1970, lost 1982, 1994, and 2011 Stanley Cup finals (The CFL's BC Lions have won six Grey Cups, last in 2011), no NBA title (Grizzlies relocated to Memphis in 2001).
• 45 years – Milwaukee since 1971 NBA title (lost 1982 World Series final and 1974 NBA Finals)
• 39 years – Portland since 1977 NBA title, lost 1990 and 1992 NBA Finals. (MLS's Portland Timbers won the 2015 MLS Cup)
• 37 years – Winnipeg no Stanley Cup title since joining NHL in 1979, neither the old nor the current Jets franchise has made the Stanley Cup finals (The CFL's Blue Bombers have won ten Grey Cups, last in 1990)
• 31 years – Sacramento waiting for first since 1985, no NBA championship appearances
• 28 years – Charlotte waiting for first since 1988. (Super Bowl appearances in 2004 and 2016)
• 27 years – Calgary since 1989 Stanley Cup, lost 2004 Stanley Cup Final (The CFL's Stampeders have won four Grey Cups since then, last in 2014)
• 27 years – Orlando waiting for first since 1989 (lost 1995 and 2009 NBA Finals)
• 26 years – Edmonton since 1990 Stanley Cup, lost 2006 Stanley Cup Finals (The CFL's Eskimos have won four Grey Cups since then, last in 2015)
• 26 years – Cincinnati since 1990 World Series title, neither the Reds nor the Bengals have returned to the World Series or the Super Bowl respectively.
• 25 years – Minneapolis–St. Paul since 1991 World Series title (1969 NFL title (non-Super Bowl), 1954 NBA title, however franchise relocated; no Stanley Cup titles). This is the longest current championship drought for any metro area with a team in each of the "Big Four" leagues. The Twins, Vikings, Timberwolves, and Wild have yet to make a championship appearance since 1991.
• 25 years – San Jose No Stanley Cup title since joining NHL in 1991.(2016 Stanley Cup Finals Appearance)
• 24 years – Ottawa No Stanley Cup title since rejoining NHL in 1992. (2007 Stanley Cup Finals Appearance) (The CFL's RedBlacks won the 104th Grey Cup in 2016.
• 24 years – Washington, D.C. since 1992 Super Bowl. (1978 NBA title, 1924 World Series title, however franchise relocated, no Stanley Cups; MLS's DC United won 4 MLS Cups during the drought, the last in 2004). Lost 1998 Stanley Cup Final.
• 23 years – Montreal since 1993 Stanley Cup, the Canadiens have not returned to the Stanley Cup final since then (The CFL's Alouettes have won three Grey Cups since then, last in 2010)
• 23 years – Toronto since 1993 World Series (1967 Stanley Cup, no NBA titles since joining in 1995, the CFL's Argonauts have won four Grey Cups since the Blue Jays' last World Series title, the Argos' last in 2012). Neither the Blue Jays, Raptors, nor Maple Leafs have made their respective finals since 1993.
• 21 years – Houston since 1995 NBA title, lost 2005 World Series final (MLS's Houston Dynamo won the 2006 and 2007 MLS Cups)
• 21 years – Jacksonville no Super Bowls since Jaguars joined NFL in 1995
• 21 years – Atlanta since 1995 World Series title (no Super Bowl, NBA, or Stanley Cup titles), lost 1996 and 1999 World Series and 1999 Super Bowl.
• All year counts are including 2016.

Those who believe in the Buffalo Curse^[1] cite as examples the four consecutive Super Bowl losses by the Buffalo Bills from 1990–1993, as well as the failure of the Buffalo Sabres to ever win the Stanley Cup. Wide Right, No Goal, and The Music City Miracle also contribute to the belief in the Buffalo Curse. Hearts were broken once again in 2006, when the Sabres lost to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, four of their top six defensemen were lost to injury along with Tim Connolly, the leading scorer of the playoffs at the time of his injury. Even though the Sabres made it back to the conference finals the next year, they lost again, this time to the division rival Ottawa Senators. It is notable that the Buffalo Bills won the AFL championship in 1964 and 1965. The alleged "curse", however, has not extended to the city's fringe or minor league teams—the Buffalo Bandits of the NLL have won 4 league championships (1992, 1993, 1996, 2008) and six division Championships (1992, 1993, 1994, 2004, 2006, 2008), and the Western New York Flash of the National Women's Soccer League, based in Buffalo but playing home games in Rochester, won the 2016 NWSL Championship. The Flash also won league titles in the two competitions that directly preceded the NWSL—Women's Professional Soccer in 2011 and WPSL Elite in 2012. The Flash also won the NWSL Shield, awarded to the team with the best regular-season record, in that league's inaugural 2013 season, but lost the championship final to Portland Thorns FC.

San Diego's two professional sports teams, the San Diego Padres and the San Diego Chargers, have never won a World Series or Super Bowl, which are believed to stem from the San Diego Sports Curse. San Diego's two former NBA teams, Rockets and Clippers, never won an NBA championship either. The Padres are tied with the Texas Rangers for the most World Series appearances (two) of the eight teams without a World Series championship. The Chargers won the 1963 AFL championship and have only appeared in one Super Bowl (Super Bowl XXIX, which they lost to the San Francisco 49ers, 49-26).

Some cities with at least three teams have shorter yet notable droughts. Minneapolis–Saint Paul has not reached a championship series since the Twins won the 1991 World Series. This drought, like the one in Buffalo, has not extended to the market's fringe or minor league teams—two such teams, the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx and the Minnesota Stars of the current North American Soccer League, won league championships in 2011, and the Lynx claimed another league title in 2013 and 2015.

Since the founding of Major League Soccer in 1996, both Washington and Columbus have won all three major U.S. soccer trophies (MLS Supporters' Shield, MLS Cup and U.S. Open Cup) during their current "Big Four" droughts. San Jose has won the MLS Supporters' Shield and MLS Cup during its "Big Four" drought while Houston, Salt Lake City, and Portland have won the MLS Cup (but no MLS Supporters' Shields or U.S. Open Cups) during their "Big Four" droughts.

All of the Canadian cities listed above have won multiple Grey Cups during their "Big Four" droughts listed above.

Notable former droughts:

• Prior to winning the 2016 NBA Finals, Cleveland had gone 52 years without a championship in any major professional sport. The drought began after the Cleveland Indians won the 1948 World Series. The Indians lost 3 World Series finals, the Browns did not make the Super Bowl, and the Cavaliers lost 2 NBA finals during the drought.
• New Orleans had gone 43 years without winning a championship in any major professional sport until the New Orleans Saints brought the city its first professional sports title via the 2010 Super Bowl. The drought began in 1967, the inaugural year of the New Orleans Saints (the oldest professional sports team still playing in New Orleans). During the drought, neither the Saints nor the Hornets (now the Pelicans) made the Super Bowl or the NBA finals respectively.
• Seattle had gone 35 years without winning a championship in any major professional sport from the 1979 NBA Finals to the 2014 Super Bowl. During the drought, the Mariners never made the World Series, the Seahawks lost the 2006 Super Bowl, and the then SuperSonics (now the Thunder in Oklahoma City) lost the 1996 NBA Finals. Including only Seattle's current major league sports teams, the Mariners and the Seahawks, increases the former drought's length to 38 years (because the Seahawks were founded in 1976, the earlier of the two team's inceptions).
• Phoenix had gone 31 years without winning a championship in any major professional sport until the Arizona Diamondbacks won the 2001 World Series. The drought began with the inception of the Phoenix Suns in 1968 (the oldest professional sports team still playing in Phoenix). During the drought, the Diamondbacks did not make the World Series (albeit only beginning play in 1997), the Cardinals did not make the Super Bowl, the Suns lost 2 NBA Finals, and the Coyotes did not make the Stanley Cup Final (albeit only beginning play in 1996). Since the World Series title, however, Phoenix has experienced a 16 year ongoing drought, leaving that World Series title its only major sports championship.
• Philadelphia had gone 25 years without a championship in any major professional sport from the 1983 NBA Finals to the 2008 World Series. This 25-year gap is still the longest in U.S. sports history for a city with all four major professional sports teams. During the drought, the Phillies lost 2 World Series finals, the Eagles lost the 2005 Super Bowl, the 76ers lost the 2001 NBA finals, and the Flyers lost 6 Stanley Cup finals.

Outside North America

Association football

England

• England has not won a major trophy since the 1966 FIFA World Cup.^[2]
• Newcastle United has not won a major trophy since 1969.^[3]
• West Bromwich Albion has not won the league since 1920.
• Manchester City went 35 years between winning major trophies, from the 1976 League Cup^[4] to the 2011 FA Cup.
• Liverpool has not won the league since 1990.^[5]
• Manchester United went 26 years without winning the league from 1967 until they ended their drought by winning the newly formed Premier League in 1993.^[6]
• Tottenham Hotspur has not won the league since 1961.

Italy

• Genoa has not won the league since 1924, and has not won a major trophy since 1937.
• Pro Vercelli has not won a major trophy (italian league) since 1922.

Portugal

• Benfica has not won a European trophy since the 1961–62 European Cup; the club has lost eight European finals since then, most recently in 2014.^[7]

Scotland

• The national team have not only never won a major tournament, but have failed to qualify for the World Cup or European Championships since 1998.
• Dundee has not won the Scottish Cup since 1910.^[8]
• Hibernian ended a 114-year wait to win the Scottish Cup in 2016, having not won the competition since 1902.^[9][10] The club lost the Scottish Cup Final ten times between the two victories.
• St Johnstone ended a 130-year wait to win a major national trophy (Scottish league championship, Scottish Cup or Scottish League Cup) when they won the 2013–14 Scottish Cup.^[11][12]

Spain

• Real Betis has not won the league since 1935, which actually is their only La Liga championship. The other top-team of Seville, Sevilla FC won his last La Liga championship in 1946, when the team won its only league title.
• Real Madrid won 6 of the 11 first European Cup ever disputed, and then entered in a 32-year period without winning a single European top championship. This was broken in 1998, when Los Blancos won their seventh European top championship. This was followed by another two Champions League titles in the following four seasons.
• Arenas de Getxo is a Basque team which currently plays in the Spanish Tercera División, the fourth level in Spanish football system. The team competed in the first seven La Liga seasons starting in 1929. Previously Arenas had won the Spanish Cup in 1919, so the drought is now 93 years old.

Australian Rules Football

In the VFL/AFL (1897–present), the longest premiership drought was that of South Melbourne/Sydney, who won their third premiership in 1933, but did not win another premiership until 2005, 72 years later. The second-longest drought in the league was that of St Kilda (69 years) who won their first and only senior premiership in 1966.

Longest VFL/AFL premiership droughts

¹ Fitzroy dropped out of the competition and folded in 1996, having never appeared in another Grand Final after their 1944 premiership.
² This is commonly known as the "Colliwobbles".
³ Geelong finished runners-up in 1897, but no Grand Final was required under the round-robin finals system in place that year.

Baseball

South Korea

• Lotte Giants has not won a KBO League since 1992.

Rugby league

The North Sydney Bears held the longest premiership drought in the NSWRL/NRL with a total of seventy-seven years. This lasted between their second premiership in 1922 up until the end of 1999 when they began a short-lived merger with Manly-Warringah known as the Northern Eagles. This merger was dissolved after three seasons resulting in North Sydney being expelled from the league. As of 2016 they are still applying for re-entry.

The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks won their first premiership in 2016 after 50 seasons of NSWRL/ARL/Super League/NRL competition – the longest wait for a first title that any club has endured. Prior to this, the Sharks had played in four Grand Finals (including a replay in 1978) for one draw and three losses.

The Parramatta Eels hold the longest active drought in the NRL totalling thirty years, having not won a premiership since 1986. For reference, Parramatta's first premiership came in its 35th season in 1981. The next longest active drought is twenty-two years held by the Canberra Raiders who have not won a premiership or appeared in a Grand Final since 1994.

The South Sydney Rabbitohs won 20 premierships in the NSWRL from the league's inception in 1908 until 1971, but had to wait to win their 21st title (their 1st in the NRL era) until 2014, a drought lasting 41 years (the Rabbitohs were inactive in 2000-01).

Hull FC lost seven consecutive Challenge Cup final appearances at Wembley Stadium between 1959 and 2008.^[13] The team won two Challenge Cups during that time, but the final victories were at Elland Road (1982 replay) and the Millennium Stadium (2005, while Wembley was being rebuilt).^[13]

Rugby union

In France, ASM Clermont Auvergne had a championship history arguably as tortured as the most "cursed" teams in North America or Australia. From their formation in 1911 through 2009, they had never won a national title despite making the championship final 10 times, and had come within a converted try in six of those games.

The drought culminated in three consecutive title-game losses in 2007 through 2009, and Les Jaunards finally broke through in 2010 to win their first title after 91 years of competition (they did not play in 1915–1919 or 1940–1942 due to World War I and World War II).

Cricket

Queensland won the Sheffield Shield in 1994/95, its 63rd season of competition, having finished second on 11 occasions in that time. In 46 of those years, only five teams competed for the Shield, as Tasmania were admitted in 1977/78 (winning the Shield in 2007/08, after 30 years).

Somerset have not yet won the English County Championship since they were admitted to the competition in 1891.^[14][15] Gloucestershire have not won the Championship since it was constituted in 1890, but won three unofficial "Champion County" titles in the 1870s, the last in 1874.

Northamptonshire have not yet won the Championship since being admitted to the competition in 1905, after the club was granted first class status.

See also

• NHL
• NFL
• NBA
• MLB
• MLS
• List of Current NFL franchise post-season droughts
• List of Major League Baseball franchise post-season droughts
• List of National Basketball Association franchise post-season droughts
• List of National Hockey League franchise post-season droughts
• List of Major League Soccer club post-season droughts
• List of Canadian Hockey League franchise post-season droughts

References