ALSO READ ; Most Ducks in IPL History (2008 – 2024) , Players With Most Zero Run Dismissals

1) Punjab Kings | Win% – 45.12
The team co-owned by Preity Zinta has shown a lot of spark since the inaugural edition of the IPL but has been very inconsistent. Apart from the 2014 season when they finished at the top of the table, Punjab Kings have qualified for the playoffs only once in 17 seasons. For a team that has boasted the likes of Kumar Sangakkara, Brett Lee, Chris Gayle and KL Rahul, that is a crazily low number.

Till the end of IPL 2024, Punjab Kings has played 246 matches, of which they won 109 games and lost 133. That is a win percentage of only 45.12! Punjab Kings have always managed a great team, but they lose out with their consistency. They have not always had the best of local talent, and their foreign exports have more often than not failed to fire. It comes as no surprise that Punjab Kings are the most unsuccessful team in IPL history.

2) Delhi Capitals | Win% – 45.6
The other team to have historically not done well in the IPL is Delhi Capitals. Founded in 2008 as Delhi Daredevils and owned by the GMR and JSW group, Delhi have had superstars galore in their unit. However, year after year, they were not able to crack the deal. AB de Villiers, David Warner, Andre Russell, Glenn Maxwell, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Glenn McGrath – you name a superstar and Delhi has had it in their lineup. But the title remains elusive.

In fact, until IPL 2020, Delhi was the only team to have the dubious record of not qualifying in the tournament’s final even once. They rectified that in 2020 reaching the final, but the team lost to Mumbai Indians in the final.

Having said that, Delhi has improved their lineup by a great deal over the last couple of years, and a few IPL titles do seem like coming their way soon. However, that does not change the fact that Delhi is one of the worst teams in IPL history. As of the end of IPL 2024, Delhi have played 252 games, won 112 and lost 134 games, with win percentages of only 45.6. They are second on the list of the most unsuccessful teams in the IPL.

3) Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Win % – 47.26
A team boasting the likes of Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Chris Gayle and many others should not be on this list. But the unfortunate reality is that despite having such superstars in their unit, Royal Challengers Bengaluru have never been able to win a single IPL title.

RCB, though have qualified for the finals of the IPL on three occasions – in 2009, 2011 and 2016. In 2009, they lost to Deccan Chargers in the final, while in 2011, they were defeated by Chennai Super Kings. In 2016 they lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad in a pulsating finale.

RCB have played a total of 256 IPL games, won 121 matches and lost 128 games, which is a win% of 47.26. They are currently led by Faf du Plessis in the Indian Premier League.

4) Sunrisers Hyderabad | Win% – 47.8
One of the newer teams in the tournament, Sunrisers Hyderabad won the IPL title in 2016 and while they have had a few big names in their armoury, they haven’t always been successful. They won the trophy under the leadership of David Warner, but have since gone down.

In 182 IPL matches, SRH have won 87 games and lost 90, which is a win percentage of 47.8. As of IPL 2024, SRH are led by Pat Cummins, who is also one of the most expensive buys in the history of the tournament.

5) Rajasthan Royals | Win% – 49.54
The winner of the inaugural edition of the IPL, Rajasthan Royals, is the fifth team when it comes to the worst team in IPL. They started the IPL with a bang. Shane Warne led a young team to glory, but Rajasthan has not been able to repeat the heroics since then. In fact, they have been primarily average in the rest of the editions.

Since then, Rajasthan has had too many changes in its setup. From the captain to the members in the side, there has been no consistency. Rajasthan has always been too reliant on its foreign exports. In all, Rajasthan has played 222 matches in the IPL and has a win percentage of only 49.54, making it one of the worst teams in the IPL.

However, they seemed to have turned a corner in the last two years. With Sanju Samson at the helm, RR qualified for the final in IPL 2023 and also came close in IPL 2024 with wins at every stage. They have recruited Rahul Dravid as the head coach in IPL 2025 and will hope to win the title in the coming years.

6) Kolkata Knight Riders | Win % – 50.70
The Shahrukh Khan co-owned Kolkata Knight Riders should ideally not be on this list. The only reason they are here is because of the poor initial seasons. KKR is one IPL team that started slowly. They had forgettable seasons from 2008 to 2011, but once Gautam Gambhir took over the reins, Kolkata’s fortunes turned for the better.

With the talismanic left-hander at the helm, Kolkata won two titles in 2012 and 2014. They have, however, tapered off since and have not been as consistent. This is why one can find Kolkata’s name on the list of the worst teams in IPL despite having won the title in two editions.

However, they stormed back in IPL 2024 to lift their third IPL title under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer.