The Texas Rangers defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks in the World Series has left the Minnesota Vikings as the longest-running North American team from the “big four” sports without a championship.
Born in 1961, the Vikings have lost four Super Bowls and suffered countless heartbreaks, most recently their 2017 drubbing in the NFC Championship Game at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles and the 2009 conference title game loss in overtime to the cheating New Orleans Saints.
Then there was the 2001 “41-donut” loss to the New York Giants in the title game and before that the most painful of them all, the 1998-99 disaster when the 15-1 Vikings fell at home in overtime to the Atlanta Falcons with a trip to Miami for the Super Bowl on the line.
The Rangers franchise began in 1961, the same year as the Vikings, though the Rangers remained the Washington Senators from 1961 until moving to Texas in 1972. The Vikings debuted roughly five months after the Rangers/Senators in 1961.
It’s important to note that the original Washington Senators actually moved to Minnesota and became the Twins in 1960. A second iteration of the Senators/Rangers was then born in D.C. in 1961.
The big four sports include the NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB. The Minnesota Twins won championships in 1987 and 1991 while the Minnesota Wild and Minnesota Timberwolves haven’t been around long enough to stake a claim as the longest-existing teams without a title.
Eleven NHL teams have never won a championship:
- Vancouver Canucks
- Buffalo Sabres
- Florida Panthers
- Ottawa Senators
- San Jose Sharks
- Nashville Predators
- Columbus Blue Jackets
- Minnesota Wild
- Seattle Kraken
- Winnipeg Jets
- Arizona Coyotes
Five of those 11 have never made it to the Stanley Cup Final: Blue Jackets, Wild, Kraken, Jets and Coyotes.
There are ten NBA teams without a championship trophy:
- Brooklyn Nets
- Charlotte Hornets
- Indiana Pacers
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Memphis Grizzlies
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Orlando Magic
- Phoenix Suns
- Utah Jazz
Five of those ten have never reached the NBA Finals: Clippers, Timberwolves, Hornets, Grizzlies and Pelicans.
