Brian Manzullo

Detroit Free Press

The Chicago Cubs have reached the World Series for the first time since 1945.

The franchise known by most beloved baseball fans as the "Lovable Losers" take on the Cleveland Indians in Game 1 on Tuesday night at Progressive Field, hoping to win their first championship in more than a century.

But this story isn't really about them -- well, not anymore. Because with their National League championship, the Cubs snapped a 71-year drought without having even appeared in the championship series, the longest in major professional sports.

So the question now becomes: Who now owns the active record for championship futility?

Among franchises rooted in one city over the past seven decades -- you guessed it -- it's the NFL's Detroit Lions.

►Yes, we know: The Lions have now won three straight

The Lions haven't appeared in a championship since 1957, when they beat the Cleveland Browns 59-14 in the NFL Championship Game. Though the Browns (as a franchise) have a similar record of futility over the years -- including an 0-7 record this season, making a bid to match the 2008 Lions' 0-16 mark -- the Browns did win the 1964 NFL Championship and lost to the Green Bay Packers in their repeat bid in 1965. That was the year before Super Bowl I.

Only two other franchises - the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans - haven't been to a Super Bowl, but neither existed until 1995 and 2002, respectively. After the Lions and Browns, the New York Jets haven't been to a Super Bowl since 1969, when they won Super Bowl III.

In the NHL, the Toronto Maple Leafs haven't appeared in a Stanley Cup finals since the 1966-67 season, the longest drought in hockey. Other than the St. Louis Blues (1969-70) and the Arizona Coyotes (who entered the NHL as the Winnipeg Jets in 1979-80), every other NHL team has appeared in at least one finals since 1983.

In MLB, now that the Cubs are in the Fall Classic, the longest drought belongs to the Washington Nationals, who have never made a World Series appearance since debuting as the Montreal Expos in 1969. The Seattle Mariners also haven't made a World Series since they formed in 1977. Among teams who have been to a World Series, the Pittsburgh Pirates own the longest drought at 36 seasons; they haven't made a return appearance since winning the World Series in 1979.

►Related: Is the Lions' late-game magic sustainable?

In the NBA, you'll find the only franchise that has a longer drought in championship appearances than the Lions: The Sacramento Kings.

The Kings were founded in 1948 as the Rochester Royals and won the NBA championship in 1951. The franchise hasn't reached the NBA finals in 65 seasons since. But it's moved four times in that span, becoming the Cincinnati Royals from 1957-72, the Kansas City-Omaha Kings from 1972-75, the Kansas City Kings from 1975-85 and finally the Sacramento Kings from 1985 to now. And the team almost moved yet again last year before owners rejected the pending move to Seattle.

So technically, the Lions aren't the most futile team in major professional sports when it comes to championship appearances. But considering the only other franchise with a longer drought has moved all over the country during its 65-year run, the Lions' fan base remains the most tortured of the bunch.

Yes, I know. Sorry for being a Debbie Downer.

At least things are going pretty well right now; the Lions have won three straight after beating the Washington Redskins 20-17 on Sunday, improving to 4-3 on the year.

Contact Brian Manzullo: bmanzullo@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrianManzullo.

Download our Lions Xtra app for free on Apple and Android!