It’s tough to write this story because I am an avid Atlanta sports fan, but I feel someone needs to address how unlucky our city is concerning sports. Nearly every sport has its troubles. The Braves are currently one of the worst teams in the MLB, the Hawks are one of the worst teams in the NBA, and the Falcons have recently had notoriously bad luck in the playoffs.

This past season, the Braves were one of the worst teams in the MLB, and most fans and experts predict a similar showing this year. Back in the 90s though, the Braves made the playoffs 14 seasons in a row with the help of a terrific pitching staff but only managed to win one World Series.

This was Atlanta’s first and only championship in a major professional sport, and it was in 1995. Some people attribute Atlanta’s failure to win other championships with the “Olympic Curse” because Atlanta hosted the Olympic Games in 1996, a year after the Braves won, and the city hasn’t won since.

Despite this unfortunate luck, the Braves do have a very bright future. According to Keith Law, an ESPN scouting expert, Atlanta has nine top 100 prospects on their team. Number two being shortstop Dansby Swanson and number 26 being second-baseman Ozzie Albies.

The go-to comeback for all Patriots fans is the tragic ending superbowl score of 28-3. The Falcons were up by 25 points with around two minutes left in the third quarter of Super Bowl 51. With the help of bad play calling on Atlanta’s part and a little luck, the Patriots came back and won the game in overtime. This was an all-time low for Atlanta sports, but the Falcon’s future looks bright with young players such as Devonta Freeman, Keanu Neal, and many more.

Currently, the Hawks are one of the worst teams in the NBA, but, along with the Braves, they too have a bright prospective future. From the 2007-08 season to the 2016-17 season, the Hawks made the playoffs, but didn’t get very close to the finals.  In 2014-15 season, the Hawks reached the conference finals and got swept  by the Cavaliers. In 2015-16, the Hawks managed to reach the conference semifinals and once again got swept by the Cavaliers.

Even college teams seem to choke when a win is on the horizon. The University of Georgia recently reached the National College Football Championship but didn’t quite get the win. They were up 20-7 with about five minutes to go in the third quarter, but Alabama made a quarterback change at halftime, putting freshman Tua Tagovailoa into the game. He ended up making the 41-yard game-winning pass to DeVonta Smith in overtime.

Georgia Tech has had some success in football despite their last championship being in 1990, but has never won a basketball championship. And other Georgia schools such as Georgia State, Kennesaw State, and many more just aren’t as competitive in major athletics.

There are also lesser-known sports teams that have had little to no success. Atlanta has had two NHL teams, the Atlanta Flames and the Atlanta Thrashers, both of whom moved to Canada. This makes Atlanta the only city in the league’s modern era to lose two teams. Even when these two teams were in the league, they were both horrible. While its teams may have not blown a playoff chance or major game, Atlanta most definitely blew two NHL franchises.

Atlanta fans have suffered throughout these years, but the future’s looking bright for some teams. Hopefully the young players can get a much needed championship for this great city. Despite all of these tough losses and bad seasons, Atlanta’s professional lacrosse team Georgia Swarm, recently won the National Lacrosse League title. There will always be one team to cheer for in Atlanta