Where Dallas Cowboys Championship Drought Ranks After Knicks Finals Victory

Which sports franchise has the longest drought now that the New York Knicks ended theirs?

New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson celebrates with his teammates after the Knicks defeat the San Antonio Spurs. | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The New York Knicks made history on Saturday night as they wrapped up the 2026 NBA Finals, winning the series 4-1 against the San Antonio Spurs. This gives the Knicks three championships in their illustrious history, but it was their first since 1973.

Ending the 53-year drought was very impressive, which is something the Dallas Cowboys hope to accomplish in the near future. As fans know (since we're all constantly being reminded), the Cowboys have not won a title of their own since the 1995 season, meaning they're going on 31 years.

As often as they're mocked for this, you would assume the Cowboys would be the next team in line when it comes to title droughts. That's not the case, however, as the Cowboys actually have 13 teams ahead of them across the three major sports (NFL, NBA, and MLB). In fact, the Knicks didn't even have the longest drought. Instead, they were fifth until Saturday night.

Which teams have the longest active title droughts?

A general view of the club's five Lombardi trophies on display at Dallas Cowboys Headquarters at The Star. | Matthew Emmons-Imagn Images

Excluding those who have never won a title, the Cleveland Guardians have the longest span going, with their last title in 1948 which was 78 years ago. From there, the Sacramento Kings are sitting at 75 years, last winning in 1951. The NFL team with the longest drought is the New York Jets, who haven't won a Super Bowl since 1968. That said, here's a look at the teams ahead of the Cowboys currently.

1. Cleveland Guardians (1948) - 78 years
2. Sacramento Kings (1951) - 75 years
3. Atlanta Hawks (1958) - 68 years
4. New York Jets (1968) - 58 years
5. Portland Trail Blazers (1977) - 49 years
6. Washington Wizards (1978) - 48 years
7. Pittsburgh Pirates (1979) - 47 years
8. Baltimore Orioles (1983) - 43 years
9. Philadelphia 76ers (1983) - 43 years
10. Detroit Tigers (1984) - 42 years
11. Chicago Bears (1985) - 41 years
12. New York Mets (1986) - 40 years
13. Washington Commanders (1991) - 35 years
14. Dallas Cowboys (1995) - 31 years

We could potentially add the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions to the mix as well. While neither has won a Super Bowl, they both won an NFL championship before it was the Super Bowl. For Cleveland, their last win was in 1964 (62 years ago). For Detroit, it was 69 years ago when they won a title in 1957.

Cowboys still get the most grief for their drought

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones before a game against the Minnesota Vikings. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Oddly enough, the teams with longer droughts than the Cowboys are hardly ever given the type of negative attention that gets hurled at Dallas.

Of course, that's what happens when the team is run by someone like Jerry Jones, who is a magnet for criticism. That said, the Cowboys' fan base has suffered, but not as much as the 13 teams ahead of them, let alone the 12 NFL teams with no Super Bowl win, the 10 NBA teams without an NBA Finals victory, or the five MLB teams who have yet to win a World Series.

That said, every one of those franchises has renewed hope now thanks to the New York Knicks.

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