The longest playoff drought in North American professional sports history is held by the
St. Louis Browns, who went 41 seasons without making the playoffs from 1903 to 1944. Among active teams, the
New York Jets and Buffalo Sabres currently share the longest active drought, with 14 seasons since their last playoff appearance as of April 2025.
All-time longest playoff droughts
Longest active playoff droughts (as of early 2025)
- New York Jets (NFL): 14 seasons (last appearance in 2010)
- Buffalo Sabres (NHL): 14 seasons (last appearance in 2011)
- Charlotte Hornets (NBA): 9 seasons (last appearance in 2016)
- Chicago Fire FC (MLS): 7 seasons (last appearance in 2017)
Longest active postseason droughts across NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL - ESPN
Apr 23, 2025 — Here are some of the longest postseason droughts in professional sports leagues: * **NBA** Charlotte Hornets, Nine seasons. Last playoff appearance ...
ESPN
Longest Playoff Droughts in Professional Sports | BetMGM
Sep 29, 2025 — The New York Jets officially have the longest active playoff drought in North American professional sports. They last made the playoffs in 2010, whe...
sports.betmgm.com
Longest Playoff Droughts in MLB History, Active & All Time
Sep 2, 2025 — Table_title: Longest Playoff Droughts in MLB History (All Time) Table_content: header: | Team | Length of Drought (seasons) | Years Between Appearanc...
Sports Illustrated
6 Longest active playoff droughts in NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL | FOX Sports
May 21, 2025 — 6 Longest active playoff droughts in NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL. Updated May. 22, 2025 12:00 p.m. ET. share. share on facebook facebook share on x x share o...
FOX Sports
Buffalo Sabres playoff drought tied for longest in pro sports, again
Apr 9, 2024 — No team in major American professional sports has a longer active playoff drought than the New York Jets and Buffalo Sabres: * **New York Jets** 13 s...
