Longest losing streaks in North American sports history: White Sox next?

The Chicago White Sox are quietly moving closer to making a list no team ever wants to be on.

With Wednesday's defeat, Chicago has lost 17 games in a row, the longest losing streak in franchise history. Its 27-74 record is also the organization's worst through 101 games — by seven wins (or losses, to keep with the spirit of this story). Moreover, its .243 winning percentage would be the worst in more than 100 years of Major League Baseball for a full season.

While the White Sox's current stretch of futility does not yet rank among the longest losing streaks in North American sports or MLB history, they are far too close for comfort. 

With that, let's take a look at the longest losing streaks ever and see just how close Chicago is to joining the list.

All stats courtesy of FOX Sports Research.

1. Chicago Cardinals (NFL) — 29 games (1942-45)

The longest losing streak in NFL history happened well before the AFL-NFL merger. In fact, it happened more than a decadebefore the birth of the AFL.

The Chicago Cardinals (who now play in Arizona) began their losing streak with three losses to end the 1942 season before losing all 10 of their games in the 1943 season. Not even a merger with the Pittsburgh Steelers could salvage a win for the Cardinals in 1944. As several players left that season to serve in World War II, the teams merged for a year, but lost all 10 games again, causing them to earn the nickname "the carpets."

After starting off the 1945 season 0-3, the Cardinals finally found themselves in the win column for the first time in three years when they defeated the cross-town rival Bears, 16-7. That was the only win of the Cardinals' 1945 campaign, as they lost their final six games en route to a 1-9 season. But good