Let’s not beat around the bush here: the classic “rags-to-riches” narrative doesn’t really fly anymore in the Boston/New England area.
Yes, there may have been a depressingly-lengthy era wherein the Red Sox languished under the Curse of the Bambino. Sure, the ’90s weren’t especially kind to the Celtics, playing in the same conference as Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls. And true, the Patriots were historically a pretty terrible football team until the arrival of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady in 2000.
But since the start of the new millennium, all three of those professional teams (plus the NHL’s Bruins) have combined to give Beantown a staggering 12 national championships, which is easily the highest total won by any city in the country during that time.