Losers, Inc.: The biggest non-winners in sports

Sure, everyone loves an underdog and what's not to like about the Arizona Cardinals, anyway?

But the root word here is dog and, in the world of sports, that is not always a desired image. Think fleas. Think bow-wows.

The Cardinals last won a championship in 1947, when the franchise was still situated in Chicago. The roots date all the way back to 1899 and took the Cards through St. Louis before they migrated to the desert in 1994.

What is it about Chicago? The only longer major championship drought in North American team sports belongs to the Chicago Cubs, who are working on their second century of futility, having last won a World Series in 1908. The Chicago Blackhawks last won a Stanley Cup in 1961, putting them ahead of the Maple Leafs by six years on the list of NHL frustrations.

Not all the teams and individuals mentioned here necessarily are record holders or celebrities in the rogues' gallery of all-time losers, but they all are extraordinary for one reason or another. With the Cardinals headed to next Sunday's Super Bowl vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers, we offer these 10 for your consideration and, possibly, sympathy:

1. Arizona Cardinals

Franchise last won the (pre-Super Bowl) NFL championship in 1947. This winter, the Cards played, and won, their first home playoff game in 61 years.

The franchise began operations as an amateur outfit in the Chicago area and became known as the Cardinals more or less by happenstance. In 1901, the owner bought used jerseys from the nearby University of Chicago; they were maroon, but faded, prompting him to describe them as Cardinal red. Aside from the '47 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, the Cards' only other championship came in 1925, when they finished first at 11-2-1 in the regular season. There were no playoffs. Since 1920, the franchise's record is surpassingly bad: 478-679-39.

2. Chicago Cubs

Last won a World Series in 1908. Reached, but lost, the Series in 1910, 1918, 1929, 1932, 1935, 1938 and 1945.

The Cubbies' only other World Series win came the year before, 1907, and one can only imagine the confidence that flowed from back-to-back titles, both defeats of Ty Cobb and his Detroit Tigers. The drought is so long that the last championship actually predates the founding of the other three major North American leagues – the NHL, NBA and NFL. That year, 1908, coincided with the introduction of baseball's iconic song "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," but attendance in Chicago was not as good as expected because fans rebelled against a ticket-scalping scam perpetrated, it was rumoured, by the club's owners.

3. Chicago Blackhawks

Last won a Stanley Cup in 1961. Only other Cup wins were in 1934 and 1938.

In 1961, goaltender Glenn Hall, described by the Chicago Tribune as the "quiet, calm, nerveless knight of the nets," backstopped the Blackhawks to victory over the Detroit Red Wings in the final. Stan Makita and Bobby Hull were still emerging as stars, but this would mark their career high points in the Windy City. The biggest news of the day, though, was a late spring snowstorm that paralyzed the area and prevented the Blackhawks from returning to Chicago promptly. The celebrations eventually took place but no one dreamed they'd be the last ones for 47 years and counting.

4. Sacramento Kings

Franchise last won an NBA title in 1951, when located in Rochester, N.Y., and called the Royals.

The Royals were in Rochester for 12 years before shifting first to Cincinnati then to Kansas City (the team's name was changed to Kings to avoid conflict with the baseball Royals), before taking their losing ways to California in 1985. When still in the National Basketball League (pre-NBA), the Royals had the distinction of employing one of the first black players in the league, William (Dolly) King, and Chuck Connors. The latter also played first base in the majors, before turning to acting full-time, best remembered for his role as Lucas McCain in the TV series The Rifleman (1958-63).

5. Zippy Chippy

Now retired, the New York-bred thoroughbred made headlines with 100 losses in 100 starts.

There is another American horse, Thrust, that is thought to have lost all of its 106 races, but it was Zippy Chippy that captured the public's imagination during the triple-digit losing streak. The gelding did win a race, but it was a publicity stunt, going head-to-head with a minor-league baseball player. Zippy's final race was in September 2004. Around the same time, a Japan-bred horse, Hara Urara, also retired after losing all 113 of its starts and engendering a massive line of merchandise bearing its name, from toys to T-shirts, books and a movie.

6. Hibernian F.C.

"Pride of Edinburgh since 1875," the soccer team last won a Scottish Cup, the national cup competition of Scotland, in 1902.

Hibs, who have enjoyed success in many other competitions through the years, were Scottish Cup runners-up in 1914, 1923, 1924, 1947, 1958, 1972, 1979 and 2001. The club has contested at least 337 Cup games since last clinching it. Hibernian's latest elimination from the tournament came earlier this month, a 2-0 loss to cross-town rival Heart of Midlothian F.C.

7. Colin Montgomerie

Widely described as "the best golfer never to have won a major," Monty, now 45, assumed the title once owned by Phil Mickelson.

The Scot has enjoyed all sorts of success worldwide, with 40 pro victories, but his frustrations in the British Open, U.S. Open, Masters and PGA Championship have assumed the dimensions of a curse. In total, he has five second-place finishes, none more painful than the 2006 U.S. Open, when he sank a 75-foot putt on the 17th hole to tie for the lead but then double-bogeyed 18 to lose to Geoff Ogilvy.

8. Marcel Dionne

Tops list of "the best player never to win a Stanley Cup," having starred in 1,348 games for the rarely competitive Red Wings, Kings and Rangers.

Dionne has also been called "the best French-Canadian player not to compete for the Montreal Canadiens." Had he played for the Habs, of course, Dionne almost certainly would have won several Cups. As it turned out, however, the year he was drafted Montreal used the No.1 selection to take Guy Lafleur and the Red Wings, a weak franchise at the time, took Dionne, who is No.5 on the NHL's all-time scoring list.

9. Dan Fouts

Considered to be "the best player who never appeared in a Super Bowl," he quarterbacked the San Diego Chargers for 15 seasons.

When Fouts retired in 1987, he ranked No.2 all-time with 43,040 yards passing. He was picked for six Pro Bowls and if the Chargers had somehow come up with a defence to match their aerial attack would have at least had a better chance of making it to a Super Bowl. Fouts grew up in a football household – his father was an announcer for the San Francisco 49ers, who employed young Dan as a ball boy.

10. Reggie Strickland

Now 40 and presumed retired, he had 363 pro fights that authorities are sure of (he used assumed names), losing 276 of them.

Strickland achieved his 15 seconds of fame in 2004, when he was featured in a New York Times story about journeymen boxers, a.k.a. tomato cans, stiffs, palookas. Strickland, who is also known to have fought under the names Reggie Buse and Reggie Raglin, is said to have sometimes climbed into the ring (and usually lost) three times in four nights.

Even losers have to find a way make a living.

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