A Tale of Two Cities: Boston Breeds Banners while DC Depresses for Decades

Boston and Washington D.C. professional sports teams have clearly had different levels of success. The great accomplishments of one city helps me cope with the great tragedies of the other. As a citizen of the DC suburbs, I will never turn on my hometown teams, but thankfully I have the privilege of rooting for two cities. Before you consider me a bandwagon fan, let me plead my case. My Mom comes from Boston and her entire side of the family still lives there. Ever since I was a child, my closet was flooded with Boston sports gear consistently sent from my relatives. I grew to love Boston as my second home and for that reason alone I cheer for both cities’ professional sports teams.

The one thing citizens in both cities have in common is their passion for their professional sports teams. According to a study done by Bleacher Report, Boston is the best city to be a professional sports fan in the country. The study accounts for many variables such as fan passion and success. With 10 championships in the last 15 years, Boston seems to have the recipe for success. On the other hand, Washington D.C. fell in 17^th place in the same bleacher report study. This largely has to do with the lack of success Washington D.C. sports teams have in the playoffs. Boston and Washington D.C. may have some similarities, but when it comes to professional sports they are incomparable.

             

The Boston Red Sox, Boston Bruins, Boston Celtics and New England Patriots are all historic franchises in their respective leagues. Like most franchises, teams go through lulls that test the loyalty and trust in fans that their team will find success in the future. No other franchise has tested this loyalty more than the Boston Red Sox. The “Curse of the Bambino” lasted 86 years until 2004 when the Red Sox swept the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series. The curse marked one of the longest title droughts in professional sports history largely blamed on the trade of Babe Ruth. Since then, the Red Sox have won two more World Series titles in 2007 and 2013. The Boston Bruins are an original six hockey team in the National Hockey League. In 2010, the Bruins beat the Vancouver Canucks to win the Stanley Cup for the first time in nearly 40 years. The Bruins fought long and hard in the playoffs that year winning 3 of their 4 series in 7 games. The Boston Celtics are the most successful team in the National Basketball Association with 17 championship titles. Although the team hasn’t seen much success in recent years, the Celtics managed to win the 2008 finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Celtics are still rebuilding since the losses of Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett who brought so much success to the franchise. The New England Patriots are like a business operation that breeds success. The team has stuck to their core with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick leading the team to 14 division titles in the last 15 years. The team has won 5 Super Bowls since 2001 and hope to win their 6^th title this weekend at Super Bowl LII in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The Washington Capitals, Washington Wizards, Washington Nationals, and Washington Redskins have a championship drought of 26 years. Since the Redskins Super Bowl title in 1992, Washington sports teams have managed to crush the hopes and dreams of their fans year in and year out. The Washington Capitals have seen the most regular season success out of the DC franchises winning the Presidents’ Trophy 3 times in the last decade. However, the Capitals have yet to make it to the conference final since 1998. The Washington Wizards have seen minimal success by attaining their first division title in nearly 40 years in 2017. Besides the division title, the Wizards have never been a playoff threat to win The Finals in recent years. In 2016, Ultimate Sports ranked the Washington Wizards as the 93^rd of 122 worst franchises in professional sports. The Washington Nationals moved back to DC in 2005 and have since won 4 division titles. The Nationals have contributed to the heartbreak in DC sports fans by infamously blowing a 6-0 home lead in Game 5 of the 2012 NLDS. The Washington Redskins have seen flashes of success in their 2012 and 2015 regular seasons, but they have been plagued by inconsistent quarterbacks with short tenures on the team. Regardless of the success that DC sports teams have in the regular season, they fail to prosper in the playoffs. None of the four teams have made a conference final in the current century. The only answer to this drought is that DC sports are cursed.

Washington Capitals lose to the New York Rangers in overtime of Game 7

References:

King, Matt. “The 25 Best Cities to Be a Sports Fan.” Bleacher Report, 12 Apr. 2017, bleacherreport.com/articles/2313355-the-25-best-cities-to-be-a-sports-fan.