When it comes to global sport, this year will be remembered as the year of the underdog. Leicester City improbably won the English Premier League for the first time in the club’s history. Both Iceland and Wales advanced deep into the European football championship against all odds. Now, several major league baseball teams are fighting for a chance to break their long losing streaks.
The Chicago Cubs have not won a World Series since 1908. They are currently playing the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have not won since the 1980s, for the National League title and a ticket to the World Series. In the American League, the Cleveland Indians haven’t won a championship since 1948. The team standing in their way are the Toronto Blue Jays, who won back-to-back World Series in the early 1990s, but have not enjoyed much success since.
Regardless of who wins, this year has proven that outsiders have a strong place in global sport. That should give us all hope.
