Sports fans are calling for Texas Senator Ted Cruz to be banned from games in the state due to his infamous "curse."
The 53-year-old cheered on the Texas Longhorns at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Monday. However, the team lost 37-31 to the Washington Huskies in the Sugar Bowl clash, with the winners progressing to next week's championship game against Michigan.
Social media users jumped online to poke fun at the politician, blaming Cruz's alleged "curse" for the Longhorns' defeat. According to internet lore, any time Cruz is in the crowd, his team loses, with people dubbing the senator a "jinx" online.
"The all time greatest jinx in sports, Ted Cruz ladies and gentlemen," wrote @RedditCFB on X, formerly Twitter.
"We need to call a special session to ban Ted Cruz from appearing at ANY Texas sporting event in the future," agreed Andy Cerda.
"The curse of Ted Cruz is real and his opponents should put out press statements tomorrow lampooning him for destroying Longhorns' chances today by attending in person," joked Bhavik Lathia.
"Do not allow Ted Cruz to claim he is a fan of your team. No matter what," said Daniel Ramirez, while @OrganizerMemes commented: "Ted cruz I hate you [so much]."
Newsweek has reached out to Ted Cruz for comment via email.
This isn't the first time that Cruz has been accused of hexing teams with his support.
In October, Houston Astros fans pleaded with Cruz, asking him not to attend the MLB play-off game against the Texas Rangers.
The Republican went to the ballgame anyway, where the Astros lost 11-4. Their opponents went on to win the 2023 World Series. According to Fan Nation, Cruz attended every at-home game that the Astros lost this year—five in total.
Although the Astros won the World Series in 2022, Cruz was still booed after taking part in the team's victory parade through Houston.
Cruz was similarly accused of "cursing" Texas Tech in 2019. The team lost the NCAA championship game against the Virginia Cavaliers, with Cruz snapping a smiling selfie just ahead of the squad's downfall.
When the Houston Rockets were knocked out of the NBA playoffs in 2018, Cruz was also in the crowd, with the Warriors winning 101-91.
In October, Cruz took to X to dispel the claims he's bad luck for sports teams. Addressing an article Rolling Stone wrote on the topic, Cruz called the writers "lying hacks."
"For 7 years, Catherine [Cruz's daughter] & I have attended nearly EVERY Astros home playoff game," he said.
"If they're going to blame me for our recent home losses, pls also credit us for TWO World Series Championships & SEVEN consecutive ALCS's—we were there cheering Stros on!"
Correction 01/03/23 11:30 a.m. ET: The Sugar Bowl was played at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, not NRG Stadium in Houston.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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