Cleveland Sports Curse
The Cleveland sports curse was a sports superstition involving the city of Cleveland, Ohio, and its major league professional sports teams, centered on the failure to win a championship in any major league sport for 52 years, from 1964 to 2016. Three major league teams based in Cleveland contributed to belief in the curse: the Browns of the National Football League (NFL); the Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA); and the then-Indians of Major League Baseball (MLB). The championship drought began after the Browns defeated the Baltimore Colts in the 1964 NFL Championship Game, two seasons before the first Super Bowl. The city's professional sports teams, including the short-lived Barons franchise of the National Hockey League, then went an unprecedented 147 combined seasons without a championship. The drought ended when the Cavaliers beat the Golden State Warriors in Game 7 of the 2016 NBA Finals by overcoming a 3–1 series deficit, an event widely interpreted a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sports-related Curses
A sports-related curse is a superstitious belief in the effective action of some malevolent power, that is used to explain the failures or misfortunes of specific sports teams, players, or cities. Teams, players, and cities often cite a "curse" for many negative things, such as their inability to win a sports championship, or unexpected injuries. American football Detroit Lions In 1958, the Detroit Lions traded Bobby Layne to the Pittsburgh Steelers, with Layne responding to the trade by supposedly saying that the Lions would "not win for 50 years". The veracity of this story has been disputed, particularly because the quote was never published at the time. Despite this, in the 50 years after the trade, the Lions accumulated the worst winning percentage of the 12 teams in the National Football League (NFL) at the time, and are still one of only two franchises that were in the NFL prior to 1966 that have not yet played in the Super Bowl. The Lions' lone playoff win, prior to th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2016 NBA Finals
The 2016 NBA Finals was the NBA Finals, championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2015–16 NBA season, 2015–16 season and conclusion of the 2016 NBA playoffs, season's playoffs. In this best-of-seven series, and a rematch of the 2015 NBA Finals, the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference champion 2015–16 Cleveland Cavaliers season, Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the defending champion and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champion 2015–16 Golden State Warriors season, Golden State Warriors in seven games, for their first championship in franchise history; as such, their win ended the Cleveland sports curse, which began when the Cleveland Browns won the 1964 NFL Championship Game. Cleveland's LeBron James was unanimously voted the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP), after averaging 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 8.9 assists. He was also the first player in NBA history to lead all players in a playoff series in points, rebounds, assi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Paul Brown
Paul Eugene Brown (September 7, 1908 – August 5, 1991) was an American American football, football coach and executive in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC), the National Football League (NFL), and the American Football League (AFL). Brown was both the co-founder and first coach of the Cleveland Browns, a team named after him, and later co-founded the Cincinnati Bengals. His teams won seven league championships in a professional coaching career spanning 25 seasons. Brown began his coaching career at Severn School in 1931 before becoming the head football coach at Massillon Washington High School in Massillon, Ohio, where he grew up. His high school teams lost only 10 games in 11 seasons. He was then hired at Ohio State Buckeyes football, Ohio State University and coached the school to its first national football championship in 1942. After World War II, he became head coach of the Browns, who won all four AAFC championships before joining the NFL in 1950. Brown coache ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cleveland Stadium
Cleveland Stadium, commonly known as Municipal Stadium, Lakefront Stadium or Cleveland Municipal Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Cleveland, Ohio. It was one of the early multi-purpose stadiums, built to accommodate both baseball and football. The stadium opened in 1931 and is best known as the long-time home of the Cleveland Indians of Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1932 to 1993 (including 1932–1946 when games were split between League Park and Cleveland Stadium), and the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL), from 1946 to 1995, in addition to hosting other teams, other sports, and concerts. The stadium hosted three AAFC Championship Games, six NFL Championship Games, served as one of the host venues of the 1948 and 1954 World Series to go along with being a four-time host of the Major League Baseball All-Star Game and the site of the original Dawg Pound, Red Right 88, and The Drive. Through most of its tenure as a baseball facility, the stadiu ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Johnny Unitas
John Constantine Unitas (; May 7, 1933 – September 11, 2002) was an American professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Baltimore Colts. Nicknamed "Johnny U." and "the Golden Arm", Unitas was considered the prototype of the modern era marquee quarterback and is regarded as one of the greatest NFL players of all time. During his professional career from 1956 to 1973, Unitas set many NFL records and was named Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player, Most Valuable Player three times in 1959, 1964, and 1967, in addition to receiving 10 Pro Bowl and five first-team All-Pro honors. He helped lead the Colts to four championship titles; three in the pre-AFL–NFL merger, merger era in 1958 NFL Championship Game, 1958, 1959 NFL Championship Game, 1959, and 1968 NFL Championship Game, 1968, and one in the Super Bowl era in Super Bowl V. His first championship victory is regarded as one of the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pro Football Hall Of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coaches, officials, franchise owners, and front-office personnel, almost all of whom made their primary contributions to the game in the National Football League (NFL). Canton is often used as shorthand or metonym for the Hall of Fame. , there are a total of List of Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees, 382 members of the Hall of Fame. Between four and nine new inductees are normally enshrined every year. For the 2020 class, a 20-person group consisting of five modern-era players and an additional 15 members, known as the "Centennial Slate", were elected to the Hall of Fame to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the NFL. The Chicago Bears have the List of Chicago Bears in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, mo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Don Shula
Donald Francis Shula ( ; January 4, 1930 – May 4, 2020) was an American professional American football, football player, coach and executive who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) from 1963 to 1995. He played seven seasons as a defensive back in the NFL. For most of his career, Shula was the head coach of the Miami Dolphins. Shula held his first head coaching position with the History of the Baltimore Colts, Baltimore Colts, whom he coached for seven seasons from 1963 to 1969. With the Colts, he led them to seven consecutive winning seasons, was a three-time AP NFL Coach of the Year (1964, 1967, 1968), and in 1968 led the Colts to a 13–1 record and a win in the 1968 NFL Championship Game over the Cleveland Browns. However, in Super Bowl III and despite being heavy favorites over the 19 1⁄2 point underdog New York Jets, the Colts were defeated in a massive upset by a score of 16–7. After coaching one more season in Baltimore, in 1970 Shula was th ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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History Of The Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They play in the South Division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The organization began play in 1953 as the Baltimore Colts with the team located in Baltimore, Maryland; it relocated to Indianapolis following the 1983 season. Carroll Rosenbloom brought an NFL franchise to Baltimore in 1953 and owned the team until 1972 when he traded the franchise to Robert Irsay. The Baltimore Colts won the NFL Championship in 1958, 1959 and 1968, with the Colts losing to the New York Jets in Super Bowl III. The Colts won their first Super Bowl title in 1970 over the Dallas Cowboys. During this time the organization was led by star quarterback Johnny Unitas until 1973 when he was traded to the San Diego Chargers. Following disappointing seasons and poor fan attendance, the franchise moved to Indianapolis in 1984. While in Baltimore the team achieve ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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1964 Cleveland Browns Season
The 1964 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 19th season, and 15th season with the National Football League. The Browns won the 1964 NFL Championship Game, NFL Championship, despite having not made the playoffs in six seasons. Regular season The regular season was a success with the Browns finishing with a regular season record of 10–3–1. They were coached by Blanton Collier who had replaced Paul Brown the previous season. The team had a tremendous amount of heart, which was demonstrated by the fact that they had key commanding wins throughout the season. For instance, they swept their arch rival New York Giants, who the previous year had edged them out as the eastern conference champion. Not only did they win both times that they played against the Giants but both wins were very convincing, the first being a 42–20 home victory and the second being a 52–20 away victory. The second victory over the Giants was a clutch, season ending game that clinched the eastern confer ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a major professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the nation's best players, and introduced many lasting innovations to the game. However, the AAFC was ultimately unable to sustain itself in competition with the NFL. After it folded, three of its teams were admitted to the NFL: the San Francisco 49ers, the Cleveland Browns and the original Baltimore Colts (not to be confused with the later Baltimore Colts team, now the Indianapolis Colts). The AAFC was the second American professional football league (the first being the third American Football League of 1940–1941) to have its teams play in a double round robin format in the regular season: each team had a home game and an away game with each of the other AAFC teams. The Cleveland Browns were the AAFC's most successful club, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Art Modell
Arthur Bertram Modell (June 23, 1925 – September 6, 2012) was an American businessman, entrepreneur and National Football League (NFL) team owner. He owned the Cleveland Browns franchise for 35 years and established the Baltimore Ravens franchise, which he owned for eight years. Assuming control of the Browns franchise in 1961, Modell was a key figure in helping promote the NFL and was initially popular in Cleveland for his active role in the community and his efforts to improve the team. However, he made controversial actions during his ownership, which included the firing of Paul Brown, the franchise's first coach and namesake, and the release of Jim Brown from the roster. In 1995, Modell faced widespread scorn in Cleveland when he attempted to relocate the Browns to Baltimore. Under the terms of an NFL-brokered settlement, Modell left the Browns' name and heritage in Cleveland, which was assumed by a new Browns team in 1999. In return, Modell retained the contracts of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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History Of The National Football League Championship
Throughout its history, the National Football league (NFL) and other rival American football leagues have used several different formats to determine their league champions, including a period of inter-league matchups to determine a true national champion. Following its founding in Canton, Ohio (1920), the NFL first determined champions through end-of-season standings, switching to a playoff system in 1933 (a one-game playoff was required in 1932). The rival All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and American Football League (AFL) have since merged with the NFL (the only two AAFC teams that currently exist, the Cleveland Browns and the San Francisco 49ers, joined the NFL in ), but AAFC Championship Games and records were not included in the NFL's record books until 2025. The AFL began play in 1960 and, like its rival league, used a playoff system to determine its champion, the NFL also incorporated AFL championship games and records in league recordbooks when they merged in 1970. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |