The first World Series was played in 1903, and The Boston Americans won five of nine games against the Pittsburgh Pirates to get the first title. Some years later that winning team were going to change their name to the Boston Red Sox. The following season, in 1904, the World Series was not contested due to an issue related to business between both leagues (AL / NL).
1905 was the year of the third World Series, that edition of the championship was a victory for the New York Giants (SF Giants today) against Philadelphia Athletics in just 5 games. The first team to win consecutive World Series were the Chicago Cubs in 1907 and 1908 both series against the Detroit Tigers. And the Tigers became the first team to lose twice in a row in the championship.
MLB Winners: List of World Series champions by year
This is the detailed list of all the World Series from 1903 to the last one that was played in the 21st century. The list includes the number of games won in the series and the year in which the title was contested. Some teams have different names depending on the year they played the World Series.
| Year | Winning team | Games | Losing team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1903 | Boston Americans | 5–3 | Pittsburgh Pirates |
| 1904 | No World Series | ||
| 1905 | New York Giants | 4–1 | Philadelphia Athletics |
| 1906 | Chicago White Sox | 4–2 | Chicago Cubs |
| 1907 | Chicago Cubs | 4–0–(1) | Detroit Tigers |
| 1908 | Chicago Cubs | 4–1 | Detroit Tigers |
| 1909 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 4–3 | Detroit Tigers |
| 1910 | Philadelphia Athletics | 4–1 | Chicago Cubs |
| 1911 | Philadelphia Athletics | 4–2 | New York Giants |
| 1912 | Boston Red Sox | 4–3–(1) | New York Giants |
| 1913 | Philadelphia Athletics | 4–1 | New York Giants |
| 1914 | Boston Braves | 4–0 | Philadelphia Athletics |
| 1915 | Boston Red Sox | 4–1 | Philadelphia Phillies |
| 1916 | Boston Red Sox | 4–1 | Brooklyn Robins |
| 1917 | Chicago White Sox | 4–2 | New York Giants |
| 1918 | Boston Red Sox | 4–2 | Chicago Cubs |
| 1919 | Cincinnati Reds | 5–3 | Chicago White Sox |
| 1920 | Cleveland Indians | 5–2 | Brooklyn Robins |
| 1921 | New York Giants | 5–3 | New York Yankees |
| 1922 | New York Giants | 4–0–(1) | New York Yankees |
| 1923 | New York Yankees | 4–2 | New York Giants |
| 1924 | Washington Senators | 4–3 | New York Giants |
| 1925 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 4–3 | Washington Senators |
| 1926 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–3 | New York Yankees |
| 1927 | New York Yankees | 4–0 | Pittsburgh Pirates |
| 1928 | New York Yankees | 4–0 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 1929 | Philadelphia Athletics | 4–1 | Chicago Cubs |
| 1930 | Philadelphia Athletics | 4–2 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 1931 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–3 | Philadelphia Athletics |
| 1932 | New York Yankees | 4–0 | Chicago Cubs |
| 1933 | New York Giants | 4–1 | Washington Senators |
| 1934 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–3 | Detroit Tigers |
| 1935 | Detroit Tigers | 4–2 | Chicago Cubs |
| 1936 | New York Yankees | 4–2 | New York Giants |
| 1937 | New York Yankees | 4–1 | New York Giants |
| 1938 | New York Yankees | 4–0 | Chicago Cubs |
| 1939 | New York Yankees | 4–0 | Cincinnati Reds |
| 1940 | Cincinnati Reds | 4–3 | Detroit Tigers |
| 1941 | New York Yankees | 4–1 | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| 1942 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–1 | New York Yankees |
| 1943 | New York Yankees | 4–1 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 1944 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–2 | St. Louis Browns |
| 1945 | Detroit Tigers | 4–3 | Chicago Cubs |
| 1946 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–3 | Boston Red Sox |
| 1947 | New York Yankees | 4–3 | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| 1948 | Cleveland Indians | 4–2 | Boston Braves |
| 1949 | New York Yankees | 4–1 | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| 1950 | New York Yankees | 4–0 | Philadelphia Phillies |
| 1951 | New York Yankees | 4–2 | New York Giants |
| 1952 | New York Yankees | 4–3 | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| 1953 | New York Yankees | 4–2 | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| 1954 | New York Giants | 4–0 | Cleveland Indians |
| 1955 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 4–3 | New York Yankees |
| 1956 | New York Yankees | 4–3 | Brooklyn Dodgers |
| 1957 | Milwaukee Braves | 4–3 | New York Yankees |
| 1958 | New York Yankees | 4–3 | Milwaukee Braves |
| 1959 | Los Angeles Dodgers | 4–2 | Chicago White Sox |
| 1960 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 4–3 | New York Yankees |
| 1961 | New York Yankees | 4–1 | Cincinnati Reds |
| 1962 | New York Yankees | 4–3 | San Francisco Giants |
| 1963 | Los Angeles Dodgers | 4–0 | New York Yankees |
| 1964 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–3 | New York Yankees |
| 1965 | Los Angeles Dodgers | 4–3 | Minnesota Twins |
| 1966 | Baltimore Orioles | 4–0 | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 1967 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–3 | Boston Red Sox |
| 1968 | Detroit Tigers | 4–3 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 1969 | New York Mets | 4–1 | Baltimore Orioles |
| 1970 | Baltimore Orioles | 4–1 | Cincinnati Reds |
| 1971 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 4–3 | Baltimore Orioles |
| 1972 | Oakland Athletics | 4–3 | Cincinnati Reds |
| 1973 | Oakland Athletics | 4–3 | New York Mets |
| 1974 | Oakland Athletics | 4–1 | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 1975 | Cincinnati Reds | 4–3 | Boston Red Sox |
| 1976 | Cincinnati Reds | 4–0 | New York Yankees |
| 1977 | New York Yankees | 4–2 | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 1978 | New York Yankees | 4–2 | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 1979 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 4–3 | Baltimore Orioles |
| 1980 | Philadelphia Phillies | 4–2 | Kansas City Royals |
| 1981 | Los Angeles Dodgers | 4–2 | New York Yankees |
| 1982 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–3 | Milwaukee Brewers |
| 1983 | Baltimore Orioles | 4–1 | Philadelphia Phillies |
| 1984 | Detroit Tigers | 4–1 | San Diego Padres |
| 1985 | Kansas City Royals | 4–3 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 1986 | New York Mets | 4–3 | Boston Red Sox |
| 1987 | Minnesota Twins | 4–3 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 1988 | Los Angeles Dodgers | 4–1 | Oakland Athletics |
| 1989 | Oakland Athletics | 4–0 | San Francisco Giants |
| 1990 | Cincinnati Reds | 4–0 | Oakland Athletics |
| 1991 | Minnesota Twins | 4–3 | Atlanta Braves |
| 1992 | Toronto Blue Jays | 4–2 | Atlanta Braves |
| 1993 | Toronto Blue Jays | 4–2 | Philadelphia Phillies |
| 1994 | No World Series | ||
| 1995 | Atlanta Braves | 4–2 | Cleveland Indians |
| 1996 | New York Yankees | 4–2 | Atlanta Braves |
| 1997 | Florida Marlins | 4–3 | Cleveland Indians |
| 1998 | New York Yankees | 4–0 | San Diego Padres |
| 1999 | New York Yankees | 4–0 | Atlanta Braves |
| 2000 | New York Yankees | 4–1 | New York Mets |
| 2001 | Arizona Diamondbacks | 4–3 | New York Yankees |
| 2002 | Anaheim Angels | 4–3 | San Francisco Giants |
| 2003 | Florida Marlins | 4–2 | New York Yankees |
| 2004 | Boston Red Sox | 4–0 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 2005 | Chicago White Sox | 4–0 | Houston Astros |
| 2006 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–1 | Detroit Tigers |
| 2007 | Boston Red Sox | 4–0 | Colorado Rockies |
| 2008 | Philadelphia Phillies | 4–1 | Tampa Bay Rays |
| 2009 | New York Yankees | 4–2 | Philadelphia Phillies |
| 2010 | San Francisco Giants | 4–1 | Texas Rangers |
| 2011 | St. Louis Cardinals | 4–3 | Texas Rangers |
| 2012 | San Francisco Giants | 4–0 | Detroit Tigers |
| 2013 | Boston Red Sox | 4–2 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| 2014 | San Francisco Giants | 4–3 | Kansas City Royals |
| 2015 | Kansas City Royals | 4–1 | New York Mets |
| 2016 | Chicago Cubs | 4–3 | Cleveland Indians |
| 2017 | Houston Astros | 4–3 | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 2018 | Boston Red Sox | 4–1 | Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 2019 | Washington Nationals | 4–3 | Houston Astros |
| 2020 | Los Angeles Dodgers | 4–2 | Tampa Bay Rays |
Atlanta Braves won the 2021 World Series after beating the Houston Astros 4-2.
MLB Championship Winners: The top 5 teams with most World Series titles
New York Yankees are the team with the most titles in the World Series with 27 titles. They won the first title in 1921, during that decade of the 20s the New York Yankees won six titles. In the 30s the team won another five World Series titles. Between the 40s and 50s the Yankees continued to dominate the championship winning another 12 titles. At the end of the 20th century the New York Yankees won 28 World Series titles.
In the 21st century the Yankees have barely managed to win four World Series titles, one in 2000 vs. Mets, another in 2001 vs. Diamondbacks, 2003 vs. Marlins and finally in 2009 vs. Philadelphia Phillies. Aside from the World Series titles, the Yankees lost 13 times, for a total of 40 World Series appearances.
MLB Championship Losers: Teams that have never won the World Series
When Major League Baseball consisted of only 16 teams in the 20th century, all of them managed, at some point, to win the World Series. But decades later, during the expansion to 30 teams, some franchises like the Seattle Mariners have never been able to win a World Series title. Here we have a list of the teams that have never won a World Series title.
Seattle Mariners: They have never won a World Series since the franchise was created in 1977.
San Diego Padres: They don’t have World Series titles but they played in a series in 1998 and lost to the Yankees.
Milwaukee Brewers: The last time they tried to win a championship title was in 1989, but they lost to the St. Louis Cardinals.
Texas Rangers: In 2011 they were very close to the World Series title but they lost against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Colorado Rockies: This team was founded in 1993, they are relatively young, and in 2007 they played and lost in the World Series against the Boston Red Sox.
Tampa Bay Rays: In 2020 they lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers after the team had a good regular season.