by Jake Feldman
Shield Staff
Detroiters have an abundance of passion and fandom for their sports teams. Detroit is one of 13 cities in North America that is home to four professional sports franchises: the Detroit Pistons, Lions, Tigers and Red Wings.
For many years, the metro Detroit area has felt the rewards of winning sports teams and the impact spread throughout the state of Michigan. When times were bad, the people of Michigan relied on the success of their franchises to escape from reality and partake in the winning attitude, regardless of the circumstances. Detroit's sports teams were the lifeblood of the city and had much success.
But an interesting paradox has since occurred. As the revival of Detroit peaked, Detroit's sports teams reached rock bottom. All of Detroit's teams moved downtown, but no major Detroit sports franchise has been in the playoffs since 2016. And in the past four years, the city’s major sports teams have played 1,366 games and won only 585 of them, which is a winning percentage of only 42%.
It became worse in 2019 with Detroit sports slumping to an all-time low.
ABC-TV sportscaster Ryan Field, who has covered Detroit sports since the early 2000s, said, "The 226 losses suffered by the four Detroit teams in the calendar year 2019 are not only the most in Detroit sports history but also the most of any city or market in any calendar year in the history of North American professional sports.”
Detroit sports are failing its fans who hope that the teams can bring revenue for their city, a face in the national media, and a winning spirit to the community.
Detroiters hope for a revival in 2020, not only for their city but for their teams. May the new year bring prosperity to Detroit's major teams and make Detroit a worldwide sports powerhouse once again.
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