How Philadelphia’s sports title droughts rank after Cubs’ World Series win – Philly.com (blog)

Now that the Chicago Cubs have ended their 108-year wait to win a World Series, here’s a look at how the title droughts for Philadelphia’s four biggest pro sports teams rank.

Baseball

The Phillies’ World Series drought is eight years old. That’s the 24th-longest drought among active teams in Major League Baseball.

The Cleveland Indians’ 68-year drought is now the longest for a franchise. Among cities, Washington hasn’t seen any of its baseball teams – two editions of the Senators and the current Nationals – win a title since 1924.

Basketball

The 76ers’ NBA title drought is 33 seasons old, dating to 1983. That ranks 14th among active teams. The Phoenix Suns have the longest drought for a single team in a single city, 48 years.

The Sacramento Kings have the longest overall drought for a franchise, if you include the team’s previous homes in Kansas City, Omaha, Cincinnati and Rochester, where it won a championship in 1951. Overall, the organization has gone 65 years without a title.

The Atlanta Hawks also have a longer drought than the Suns, 58 years. That goes back to the team’s time in St. Louis, where it won a championship in 1958.

Football

Anything is possible @Eagles

— FGSB (@FlyGoalScoredBy) November 3, 2016

The Eagles’ NFL title drought is now 55 seasons old, dating to 1960. That is the third-longest drought among all football teams. The Arizona Cardinals have the longest, 68 years, dating to when they won the 1947 NFL title as the Chicago Cardinals.

As superstar Daily News statistician Bob Vetrone noted on Wednesday, the Eagles’ drought was the seven-longest of any team in the four major sports before the Cubs’ triumph:

TITLE DROUGHTS
1908 Cubs (MB)
1947 Cardinals (NFL)
1948 Indians (MLB)
1951 Kings (NBA)
1957 Lions (NFL)
1958 Hawks (NBA)
1960 Eagles (NFL)

— Bob Vetrone Jr. (@BoopStats) November 2, 2016

Hockey

The Flyers’ Stanley Cup title drought has endured for 40 seasons, dating to 1975. That is the sixth-longest drought in the NHL. The Toronto Maple Leafs are No. 1, having not won it all since 1967. The other teams with longer droughts than the Flyers are the St. Louis Blues, Buffalo Sabres, Vancouver Canucks, and Washington Capitals.

All sports combined

Among cities/regions with teams in all four big leagues, the longest wait belongs to Minneapolis-St. Paul. The Twin Cities last celebrated a championship when the Twins won a World Series in 1991. Washington, D.C. is second at 24 years, dating to the 1992 Super Bowl.

Among cities with three teams in the big leagues, the longest drought belongs to Houston. It has been 21 years since the Rockets won the NBA title.

Among cities with two big-league teams, the longest drought belongs to San Diego. It has been 53 years since the Chargers won the title in the old AFL. Buffalo is second at 51 years.

Among cities with one team in the big leagues, the longest drought officially belongs to Portland, Ore. The Trail Blazers haven’t won an NBA title in 39 years.

However, Portland’s drought comes with a caveat, because both of its soccer teams have won titles in recent years, and the city cares about them a lot. The National Women’s Soccer League’s Thorns won a championship in 2013, and Major League Soccer’s Timbers triumphed in 2015.

So it seems fair to give the crown to Sacramento. The Kings moved there in 1985, and the city is still waiting for its first major professional sports title.