Royals are ranked 15th out of 122 franchises in ESPN Magazine

If you were looking for the vindication that is not offered by national broadcasts, coastal media bias, or Kansas City's relative obsolescence over the past two decades of sports, then look no further than ESPN The Magazine, who has taken the time to rate and rank all 122 professional sports franchises in terms of fan satisfaction. Here is the criteria they used:

Affordability (11.3%): Price of tickets, parking and concessions

Coaching (3.2%): Strength of on-field leadership

Fan relations (25%): Courtesy by players, coaches and front office toward fans, plus how well a team uses technology to reach fans

Ownership (13.1%): Honesty; loyalty to core players and the local community

Players (14.6%): Effort on the field, likability off it

Stadium experience (9.8%): Quality of arena; fan-friendliness of environment; frequency of game-day promotions

Title track (4.6%): Championships won or expected within the lifetime of current fans

Bang for the buck (18.3%): Wins in the past two years per fan dollar, adjusted for league schedules

For their part, the Kansas City Royals come in 15th, behind five hockey teams, two NFL squads, three NBA outfits, the Pittsburgh Pirates, Arizona Diamondbacks, Seattle Mariners Seahawks, and St. Louis Cardinals.

The rankings are derived from diverse and completely relevant questions such as fan relations, bang for the buck, and affordability, where Kansas City rates relatively high, and others like ownership and title track, where Kansas City rates comparatively lower, but still in the top one-third of teams.

This also represents an increase of 56 spots from their 2014 ranking, where they came in at 71st out of 122. The Chiefs, for their part, come in at 38th, despite being miserable, wretched, and terrible, all at the same time.

The poll also does not include Major League Soccer, despite its relative popularity, and the fact that it has Major League right there in the name.

Because you care, the worst franchises in sport are the Philadelphia Phillies, Denver Nuggets, Washington Redskins, New York Knickerbockers, and finally, the Toronto Maple Leafs.