After the Giants won the series, their first in 50 years, I thought back to some of the long droughts that ended this decade, like the Red Sox, Saints, Blackhawks and White Sox. It seemed like a lot of franchises in all 4 major pro sports were finally breaking through over the past 10 or so years. The Red Sox certainly got the most attention, but I had a feeling that many other teams had won a title or made a final game for the first time ever, or in a long time. I decided to look up and see how many there actually were.
And yes, there were quite a few.
Teams that won a championship this decade for the first time ever, or the first time in a long time (more than 35 years):
St. Louis Rams '00 (see also: Arizona Cardinals '09) - The Rams won their first Super Bowl (they had lost one while in Los Angeles). This was their first overall title since 1951 (pre-Super Bowl era), and first since moving in 1995. This was also the first NFL title for the city of St. Louis, as the football Cardinals never won anything while they were there.
Baltimore Ravens '01 (see also: Indianapolis Colts '07) - The Ravens won their first Super Bowl since moving in 1996. Baltimore the city already had titles with the Colts, but this was the first for the "new" franchise. If you count their previous history as the Browns, it was still their first Super Bowl appearance and win.
Arizona Diamondbacks '01 - Won first title in first World Series appearance after only 4 seasons of existence. Yeah, I know, not much of a drought..... but, they were the first team from that state to win a title. Arizona has had pro teams since 1969, although up until the 80's it was just the Suns.
New England Patriots '02 - Won first Super Bowl. Franchise started in 1960.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers '03 - Won first Super Bowl in first appearance. Franchise started in 1976. They sure seemed cursed for a long time; maybe it was just those orange jerseys.
Anaheim / Los Angeles Angels '02 - Won first title ever in first trip to World Series. Franchise started in 1961.
Tampa Bay Lightning '04 - Won first Stanley Cup. Franchise started in 1992, despite questions about why they'd put a hockey team in Florida.
Boston Red Sox '04 - Won title for first time since 1918. You may have heard about this.
Chicago White Sox '05 - Won title for first time since 1917, in first trip to World Series since 1959. Yes, they were out longer than the Red Sox but got less attention, probably because everyone knows where their bad karma came from.
Carolina Hurricanes '06 - Won first Stanley Cup, including time as Hartford Whalers, who joined NHL in 1979.
Miami Heat '06 - Won first NBA title in first finals trip ever. Franchise started in 1988.
Indianapolis Colts '07 - As stated, the Colts had won Super Bowls in Baltimore, but this was the first pro title of any kind for the state of Indiana. The Colts moved to Indy in 1984.
Anaheim Ducks '07 - Won first Stanley Cup. Franchise started in 1993. Unfortunately, the junior world titles accumulated under the reign of Emilio Estevez did not count.
New Orleans Saints '10 - Won first title in first trip to Super Bowl. Franchise started in 1967.
Chicago Blackhawks '10 - Won Stanley Cup for first time since 1961.
San Francisco Giants '10 - Won title for first time since 1954, and first ever since they moved west.
And the Phillies..... Philadelphia had the infamous curse of William Penn, so named for the old rule that no building could be made higher than the statue of Billy Penn that sits atop city hall. This rule was broken in the mid 80's, and since it happened, no team had won a title, until the Phils. Now, 1983-2008 may not seem like a super long time. 25 years, compared to some of these franchises, isn't much. But when you consider the fact that Philly has 4 teams, to not have any of them win any titles in 25 years is a big stretch. Consider all the cities that have 4 or more teams. None of them had longer streaks. Even the cities with 3 pro teams didn't have as long of a winless streak at the time the Phillies won.... well, except for one.... you can guess who that is....
Cities with 3 or more teams (4 or more get an *), with last title won, as of September 2008 [last title in brackets]:
Atlanta* [Braves '95], Boston* [Red Sox '07], Cleveland [err...Browns '64], Chicago* [White Sox '05], Dallas* [Stars '99], Detroit* [Pistons '04], Denver* [Avalanche '01], Houston [Rockets '94], Los Angeles* [Lakers '03], Miami* [Heat '06], Minneapolis* [Twins '91], New York* [Giants '08], Oakland [A's '89], Phoenix* [D-Backs '01], Philly* [Sixers '83], Pittsburgh [Steelers '05], St. Louis [Cardinals '06], Tampa Bay [Lightning '04], Toronto [Blue Jays '93], Washington* [Redskins '92]
(....and if you want to include North Carolina with Charlotte/Raleigh [Hurricanes '06] and Wisconsin with Milwaukee/Green Bay [Packers '97], they were more recent too.)
So maybe it was a big deal that Philly overcame that. Sorry, Cleveland.
Teams that made a championship game/finals appearance for the first time:
Already covered - winners in their first appearance - Diamondbacks, Angels, Ravens, Lightning, Heat, Saints
Tennessee Titans '00 - First Super Bowl appearance, not only for their brief time in Nashville, but also counting their previous years as the Houston Oilers. The Oilers won the AFL title in 1961, but never made the Super Bowl once it started.
Indiana Pacers '00 - First finals appearance. Franchise joined NBA in 1976.
New Jersey Nets '02 - First finals appearance. Franchise joined NBA in 1976.
Carolina Panthers '04 - First Super Bowl appearance. Franchise started in 1995. Not that long, but they had some terrible luck and tragedy.
Houston Astros '05 - First World Series appearance. Franchise started in 1962.
Seattle Seahawks '06 - First Super Bowl appearance. Franchise started in 1976.
Dallas Mavericks '06 - First finals appearance. Franchise started in 1980.
Ottawa Senators '07 - First finals appearance. Franchise started in 1992.
Cleveland Cavaliers '07 - First finals appearance. Franchise started in 1970. Despite Dan Gilbert's promise, this is probably not going to happen again anytime soon.
Colorado Rockies '07 - First World Series appearance. Franchise started in 1993.
Tampa Bay Rays '08 - First World Series appearance. Franchise started in 1998. Not long, but after (all their) 10 seasons only finishing dead last, it was a surprise run.
Arizona Cardinals '09 - First Super Bowl appearance. First NFL title game appearance in Phoenix. They last won the NFL title in 1947, long before the Super Bowl era, when they were in Chicago. They never won a title nor made it to the final game during years in St. Louis.
Texas Rangers '10 - First World Series appearance. Includes previous years as "new" Washington Senators. Lots of rough years. Franchise started in 1961.
Notable droughts (40 years or more of no titles, 50 or more with no finals appearances) still abound:
Arizona / St. Louis / Chicago Cardinals - last won NFL title in 1947, haven't won Super Bowl
Atlanta Falcons - never won NFL title or Super Bowl; franchise started in 1966
Atlanta Hawks - last won NBA title in 1958 while they were in St. Louis; have never made NBA finals since moving to Atlanta in 1968
Buffalo Bills - never won Super Bowl, despite four straight trips; franchise won AFL title in 1966; just ask Vincent Gallo
Buffalo Sabres - never won Stanley Cup; franchise started in 1970
Chicago Cubs - haven't made World Series since 1945; haven't won since 1908
Cincinnati Bengals - never won NFL title or Super Bowl; franchise started in 1968
Cleveland Browns - last won NFL title in 1964; have never made a Super Bowl (unless you count the Ravens, but they don't)
Cleveland Cavaliers - never won NBA title; franchise started in 1970
Cleveland Indians - haven't won World Series since 1948
(Cleveland, city of - lake on fire, LeBron's decision, the fumble, Jose Mesa, last title of any kind in 1964)
Denver Nuggets - never won ABA title or made NBA finals; franchise began in 1967
Detroit Lions - last won NFL title in 1957; have never made a Super Bowl
Houston Astros - never won World Series; franchise started in 1962
Houston NFL teams - haven't ever made Super Bowl; Oilers won AFL title in 1961 but never made SB; Texans haven't even made playoffs yet
Los Angeles Clippers / Buffalo Braves - have never made NBA finals; franchise started in 1970
Los Angeles Kings - never won Stanley Cup; franchise started in 1967
Milwaukee Brewers - never won World Series; franchise started in 1969
Minnesota Vikings - never won Super Bowl; franchise started in 1961
Minnesota NHL teams - North Stars never won Stanley Cup from 1967-1993; Wild has not made finals in 10 years of existence (I'm giving them this because this one of the few places in America that really REALLY cares about hockey)
Philadelphia Eagles - last won NFL title in 1960. Have not won Super Bowl. I guess this isn't the WORST place to be......
Phoenix Suns - never won NBA title; franchise started in 1969. A lot of close misses.
Sacramento / Kansas City Kings - have not won NBA title since 1951, when they were the Rochester Royals. Have not made finals since 1951 either. (Were close a few years ago before Laker shenanigans.)
San Diego Padres - never won World Series; franchise started in 1969
St. Louis Blues - never made Stanley Cup finals; franchise started in 1967
Texas Rangers - never won World Series; franchise started in 1961
Toronto Maple Leafs - haven't won Stanley Cup since 1967
Vancouver Canucks - never won Stanley Cup; franchise started in 1970
Washington Nationals / Montreal Expos - never made a World Series; franchise started in 1969
.... and maybe we can count the Jets and Chiefs, who won some of the early Super Bowls ('69, '70) but haven't made it since......
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