A decade ago I found myself in a town on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, being given a tour of the local soccer stadium by the town’s mayor. During the tour he evinced great pride in their community’s support for the team despite the fact that it had not won a championship since the 1950s—the longest title drought endured by any professional sports team in the world, I was told.

I politely begged to differ, and told them of the futility of my favorite baseball team, the Chicago Cubs. After a minute of disbelief—resolved only after we consulted the Internet—the mayor asked a simple question: “Who would root for such a team?” Good question.