England finished in third place at the 2026 World Cup by defeating France. The English fans were likely fine with that, but nothing like they would have been had they actually won the entire tournament. This is likely how Colts fans felt in 1965 and 1966, too. Not the Indianapolis Colts, of course, but the fans when the team was still in Baltimore.
The NFL didn't use to have a third-place/fourth-place game, but decades ago they did. Having that now seems ridiculous, though one may be the league would entertain if enough money can be made. The risk to players being injured doesn't seem to be worth the game, but money rules all in the league.
Anyone who remembers those Colts games in the mid-1960s will definitely have been a long-term fan. The last of those third-place victories was a season before the first Super Bowl. Thankfully, Indy, erm...meaning Baltimore, won the title in 1971, the season after Don Shula left as head coach. His loss, though.
How Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts fans can empathize with England during the World Cup
Ironically, Shula doesn't get credit in league history for his third-place wins with Baltimore. His all-time wins stand at 347, the record for a head coach, according to the NFL, but that number should be 349, except that the playoff games for third place didn't count.
Shula had moved on to the Miami Dolphins after leaving Baltimore, and he did win the Super Bowl in 1971 and 1972, but he could have made it three had he only stayed with the Colts. After '72, even though Shula continued to coach Miami until 1995, he wouldn't taste a title again.
Among the Colts' legendary quarterbacks in the history of the franchise, Johnny Unitas was the first. Ironically, when the Colts won their first NFL title in 1968, the year before the Super Bowl, Unitas was overtaken as QB1 by Earl Morrall. Then, when the team won the Super Bowl for the 1970 season, Unitas was the main starter, but both played in the title game. It was an odd time.
While the Colts lost to Shula's Dolphins during the 1970 season, Miami lost in the first round of the playoffs that season. Baltimore had the final word, at least for that year. Maybe overall, though, by the time the Indianapolis Colts won their first Super Bowl, Don Shula was long retired.
Now, both the Colts and the Dolphins have two Super Bowl victories, but Miami fans have not tasted the ultimate success since the 1973 season. What will always remain true is that Shula won't get credit for his two third-place finishes while he was with the Colts. England will get credit for not winning the 2026 World Cup, too.
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