Winning a championship, no matter the sport or league, is always emotional. After all, it’s the end goal for players, executives, coaches and even fans. Every practice, setback and loss comes with the ultimate prize in mind: bringing a title to the city the team calls home.
It’s not uncommon to see tears flow when a championship is finally secured. But throughout the history of professional sports in North America, some title-winning teams have stood apart from the rest because of the emotions they inspired. They become “Teams of Destiny,” leaving fans telling stories about them for generations.
Those kinds of champions — teams that either end a long title drought or overcome extraordinary challenges on their way to the top — come along only once in a while. In the NBA, there’s a strong case that the 2025-26 New York Knicks just joined that group.
Between ending a 53-year championship drought, the sheer size and passion of their fan base, and the way New York navigated the 2026 NBA Playoffs — from dominant performances to remarkable comebacks — the Knicks’ title run is one that will be remembered as one of the most satisfying in league history.
As the Knicks celebrate bringing the Larry O’Brien Trophy back to one of the NBA’s most storied franchises, here’s a look at some of the other notable championships remembered for their emotional impact.
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Longest suffering sports championships in recent history
Every sports championship is the culmination of hard work, dedication and the perfect blend of luck, clutch moments and talent, but some stand out among the rest for their added impact on an entire fanbase.
Here are some of the most emotional title wins.
Knicks end 53-year NBA title drought, 2026
For the eighth-straight season in 2026, the NBA has crowned a different champion. And while Kawhi Leonard bringing a title to Toronto, Giannis Antetokounmpo winning one with the Bucks and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the Thunder to their first Finals win all resonated, with smaller-market squads emerging victorious, there was something even more special about the 2026 Knicks.
There has been a massive contrast between New York’s deep basketball lore and the Knicks’ status as one of the NBA’s darling franchises, to how much the team had struggled over the last few decades despite a few stars and solid years. There’s a reason the 21st century Knicks were always considered a laughing stock of the league — despite having deep pockets, the appeal of Madison Square Garden and an iconic feel, the team was rarely good.
Signing Jalen Brunson in free agency changed everything, with the hard-nosed guard establishing himself as the perfect fit to lead a New York team, constantly underrated in the past and proving many doubters wrong about his abilities in the NBA. Once the Knicks built talent around Brunson, they’ve been good again, but winning a championship still appeared to be a tall task.
Then the 2026 playoffs arrived, and they looked like they had the Basketball Gods on their side. First, that was through their dominance — New York wrecked the Hawks, 76ers and Cavaliers to stampede to the Finals for the first time since 1999. But in the Finals, it’s been all about clutch plays, from Brunson’s fourth-quarter heroics to a historic Game 4 comeback and Anunoby’s game-winner.
OG ANUNOBY WITH THE PUTBACK.
KNICKS COMPLETE THE 29-PT COMEBACK FOR THE WIN.
LARGEST COMEBACK IN NBA FINALS HISTORY 🤯 pic.twitter.com/ZtWVWY6JsR
— NBA (@NBA) June 11, 2026
Add in the fact that this franchise has dealt with a lot of misery in the 53 years since its last championship, 1973, and the 2026 Knicks became easy to root for. The fanbase has always been known for its intensity, but it’s reached a new level over the last few weeks — including all the star power on the sidelines at Madison Square Garden, adding another element of pop culture into the emotional mix.
Even after just going up 3-1, it was evident how much the Knicks’ success meant to New York — there were thousands of people in the city’s streets celebrating being on the verge of a championship.
Knicks fans were celebrating and threw this cone perfectly on someone’s head
This clip is unreal. 🤣🤣🤣
(via @sidetalknyc)
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) June 12, 2026
One of the NBA’s longest title droughts is over, but that’s not the only reason that the Knicks’ 2026 Finals win will be remembered. They did it in entertaining fashion, overcoming the “Can they really do this?” questions until the very end. Finally, the Knicks will no longer be the subject of any NBA jokes.
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Capitals win first Stanley Cup in Alex Ovechkin era, 2018
In 2005, the Washington Capitals were blessed with the opportunity to draft a player who was considered a potential generational prospect at No. 1 overall. Alex Ovechkin, coming out of the Russian Super League, was one of the most highly-regarded young players hockey had ever seen.
He immediately lived up to the hype, finishing third in the entire league in scoring as a rookie and becoming the first rookie in 15 years to be named to the NHL first All-Star team. Ovechkin inked a 13-year contract by 2007-08, the richest in league history, and his first Hart Memorial Trophy.
As Ovechkin racked up individual accolades for the years to come, there was one issue: the Capitals were continually failing to even reach the Stanley Cup Finals, let alone win one. From 2007-17, Washington made the playoffs nine times with Ovechkin, whose legend was only growing as one of the best NHL players of all-time. All of them resulted in exits.
By 2017-18, it was starting to look like Ovechkin, at 32 years old, might never win a Stanley Cup despite his glorious resume. But after winning 49 games in the regular season, Washington took down Columbus, Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay to finally reach the championship round with Ovechkin — and matched up against Las Vegas, the moment finally arrived.
8 years ago today, we celebrated the Capitals’ 2018 Stanley Cup victory with an iconic parade through DC.
Always proud to be the District of Champions! pic.twitter.com/dWMtgE49gQ
— Mayor Muriel Bowser (@MayorBowser) June 12, 2026
The Capitals claimed the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals in five games, with their captain, Ovechkin, finally securing his long-awaited hardware and winning the Conn Smythe Trophy. Granted, the team hasn’t returned to the Stanley Cup Finals since then, with Ovechkin likely to settle for his one win — but perhaps that makes the 2018 title more special.
Washington’s title resulted in some wild celebrations from Ovechkin, including in a fountain:
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Eagles, Nick Foles deliver Philadelphia’s first Super Bowl
Before the Nick Sirianni-Jalen Hurts-led Eagles established a golden era for the franchise, appearing in two Super Bowls in three years while winning one, Philadelphia was one of the NFL teams constantly being poked fun at. Despite being around for the entire Super Bowl era as one of the league’s most historic franchises, the Eagles lost their only two appearances in 1980 and 2004.
While Philadelphia was a regular contender in the NFC East, it never quite translated to playoff success. That is, until the 2017 season, when one of the NFL’s most storybook runs took place.
After Carson Wentz led the team at quarterback to a 13-3 regular season, throwing the football like an MVP candidate, a lot of hope was lost when he went down with a late-season torn ACL. Philadelphia turned to a familiar face at quarterback, Nick Foles, who had previously been a starter for the team in a previous stint.
Despite the Eagles owning an elite defense and plenty of weapons, the quarterback change casted doubt over their Super Bowl chances — but they proceeded to beat the Falcons in the divisional round, then steamroll the Vikings in the NFC Championship Game. In Super Bowl 52, the Eagles were pinned against Tom Brady and his dynastic New England Patriots.
Foles was terrific in the Super Bowl, winning MVP honors — and after a back-and-forth fourth quarter that included Brandon Graham’s famous strip-sack of Brady and a failed Hail Mary attempt for New England, Eagles-green confetti fell for the first time at a Super Bowl.
EAGLES WIN SUPER BOWL LII
AS CALLED BY MERRILL REESE pic.twitter.com/tF8gqaLy39
— Nick Piccone (@_piccone) February 4, 2024
For the fanbase, the culmination of the Super Bowl drought, the Wentz-Foles dynamic, the underdog mentality throughout the playoffs and knocking off an NFL legend in Brady all added up to an emotional victory. That showed at the parade, where team captain Jason Kelce put together one of the most famous sports speeches ever, listing misconceptions that “they” said about every player and coach.
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Cubs break Curse of the Billy Goat, 2016
No broken professional sports title drought may ever compare to the what the Cubs accomplished in 2016. In the alleged “Curse of the Billy Goat,” the tale said that during Game 4 of the 1945 World Series, which the Cubs lost, Billy Goat Tavern owner William Sianis had a pet goat that was bothering fans, so they were asked to leave the stadium. In response, Sianis allegedly declared that the Cubs wouldn’t win any pennants moving forward.
Whether you believe that tale or not, the Cubs had no luck over the span of 116 years — they had last won a World Series back in 1908. For a franchise founded in 1876, Chicago was a bit of an embarrassment almost annually, failing to make the playoffs in every year from 1946-83, 1990-97 and 2009-14 while stalling out at the NLCS when they did find success.
Last-place finishes and bad baseball seemed destined to last forever at Wrigley Stadium. But in 2016, things were looking up. The Cubs won 103 regular-season games, then proceeded to beat the Giants in the NLDS and the Dodgers in the NLCS. For the first time since the alleged “Curse of the Billy Goat” began, they had a chance in the World Series.
It then appeared that Chicago was done for after its opponent, the Cleveland Indians, took a 3-1 series lead in Game 4. But the Cubs came crawling back, relying on a roster including Jon Lester, Jake Arrieta, Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and more to force Game 7.
That Game 7 wound up being an all-time classic — it took exchanged leads, extra innings and a heroic Ben Zobrist double in the 10th frame for Chicago to finally win a title, beating the Indians and completing the 3-1 series comeback.
The Cubs’ drought was already the massive storyline of the 2016 World Series. But with the 3-1 deficit and the wild Game 7 mixed in, it produced one of the most gratifying World Series wins in MLB history.
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LeBron James delivers Cleveland first NBA championship, 2016
It doesn’t get more storybook in the NBA than the Cavaliers’ 2016 title.
In 2010, after years of individual success but no rings to show for it, LeBron James left Cleveland for Miami, looking to build his resume as a megastar who had already proven himself as one of the greatest basketball players ever. He reached the 2007 Finals with the Cavaliers, but they were swept — and James became an incredibly unlikable figure in Cleveland for choosing the glamour of Miami over loyalty in free agency.
Six years later, Cavaliers’ discontent with James looked silly. After four years and two titles with the Heat, James returned home, with Cleveland building a title-worthy roster around him — and after coming up short against a budding dynasty, the Warriors, in 2015, the Cavaliers returned the favor in dramatic fashion in 2016.
Owning a franchise history of nearly 50 seasons without yet securing a title, James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love went down 3-1 in the 2016 Finals against Golden State. It appeared the Warriors would secure a second-straight championship, especially considering no NBA team had ever overcome that deficit in the Finals. And it wasn’t just an NBA drought for Cleveland — the city hadn’t won a major professional sports title since the Browns in 1964.
James led the Cavaliers right back in the series, and Game 7 wound up being as much of a classic as anticipated. In a close game in the fourth quarter, he famously blocked Andre Iguodala’s layup attempt off the glass, while Irving had the dagger 3-pointer to bring the Cavaliers their first-ever championship.
James was moved to tears as he finally accomplished the goal he originally took on in 2003: bringing a championship to Cleveland. The parade and celebrations were as rowdy as anticipated to follow.
Saints win 2010 Super Bowl after Hurricane Katrina
When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, Louisiana, in August 2005, it left extensive damage to the Louisiana Superdome, the home of the Saints. They were unable to play in the stadium for the entire 2005 season, having to host games at LSU’s stadium and the Alamodome in San Antonio instead.
Following some rumors over their potential re-location, the Saints were able to return to the Superdome by 2006 — and they went on to have their most successful season ever, reaching the NFC Championship Game. Just three seasons later, a team that didn’t have a true home field was hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
The Saints went 13-3 in 2009, then handled the Cardinals and Vikings in the playoffs to reach the Super Bowl, where they emerged with a 31-17 victory over the Colts. Drew Brees won Super Bowl MVP honors.
While the Saints’ championship success didn’t come immediately after the disaster from Hurricane Katrina, their 2009 Super Bowl win was still viewed as a massive turnaround from where the team and fanbase sat just years prior, questioning its entire future in New Orleans.
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Red Sox snap Curse of the Bambino
Before the Cubs broke the “Curse of the Billy Goat,” baseball had another wacky “curse” broken in the 21st century.
The Boston Red Sox were allegedly cursed from 1918 on — which was when their most recent championship was — because of their decision to sell a player who would become an all-time great, Babe Ruth, to the rival Yankees. Ruth, nicknamed “The Bambino,” had already helped bring three championships to the Red Sox in 1915, 1916 and 1918. But when he joined the Yankees, a new baseball power emerged, with New York becoming one of the most dominant sports franchises in the country.
The sale of Ruth didn’t just add lore to the long-standing Red Sox-Yankees rivalry. It also led to the “curse” of Boston’s MLB team, with the squad losing the 1946, 1967, 1975, and 1986 World Series and blowing various opportunities to win the pennant over the following 80-plus years.
Finally, however, in 2004, things changed. The Red Sox met the Yankees in the ALCS, an opportunity to beat the team they once traded Ruth to to “begin” the curse. Boston lost the three games to open the series, looking done for the season.
But after even trailing in the ninth inning of Game 4, the Red Sox pulled off a miracle, winning the four remaining games of the series to stun the Yankees and reach the World Series, where they beat the team they faced in two “cursed” World Series, the Cardinals.
Boston, in a sweep, snapped an 86-year title drought and the “Curse of the Bambino,” with the 3-0 comeback vs. the Yankees still the only instance of a team overcoming that deficit in MLB history.
