Some teams and players just can't deal with prosperity. They reach the brink of success and then implode spectacularly. And when it happens, it becomes a part of sports lore, unforgettable for all the wrong reasons.
We asked a panel of ESPN.com experts to determine which flameouts were the most excruciating, taking into account the magnitude of the event, the size of the blown lead and the historical significance of the meltdown. The resulting list of the 25 worst collapses of all time contains some of the best-known moments in sports history.