History Main / SecondPlaceIsForLosers

* ''Franchise/{{Cars}}'': Subverted in the first film, where Lightning McQueen doesn't get first place [[spoiler:Because he stopped short of the finish line and reversed to help an injured King cross it for his final race, allowing Chick Hicks, who had caused King to be injured, to cross first.]] Despite this, McQueen is still offered the chance to be Dinoco's spokescar, because in the owner's own words, "There's more to racing than just winning".

'''Jerome:''' Are you colorblind, too? It's silver. Jerome Morrow was never meant to be second place.

* Happens in ''Manga/ParadiseKiss''. While the other members take it better, [[spoiler: winning the second prize in the SchoolFestival contest]] is the catalyst that sends George into a life crisis, believing he can't connect with the public (and thus achieve success as a fashion designer) without compromising his personal artistic vision. Yukari also takes it rather dramatically. [[spoiler: Angst ensues, they break up. It's not the only reason, but it sure creates a lot of drama.]]
* ''Anime/YuGiOh'': This is Seto Kaiba's outlook on life. He lost his ''Duel Monsters'' Champion title to Yugi and he didn't manage to defeat Yugi in a ''fair'' duel in the Duelist Kingdom. He creates the Battle City tournament to gather all Egyptian God Cards and to defeat Yugi in his tournament. However, Kaiba loses to Yugi in the semi-finals, so after the end of the Battle City, Kaiba blows up Alcatraz and the whole island to ''kill'' Yugi with his friends, but they escape. After Battle City, Kaiba loses his goal of becoming number one in favor of focusing on his Kaiba Land project, but defeating Yugi still remains a symbolic goal in his eye, proven by the way he blows his top in the DOMA Arc (anime only) when he finds out his rival has lost to Rafael.
* Kaiba's ''Anime/YuGiOh5Ds'' {{expy}} Jack Atlas gets hit with this ''hard'' in his duels with Yusei Fudo. When their first turbo duel gets interrupted by the Crimson Dragon crashing the final play, Jack sees a video recording of their cards and is shocked to learn that Yusei would've won the duel, sending him into a funk until he gets the chance for a rematch in the Fortune Cup. This duel ends with Yusei winning; once Jack loses his champion status, his fanbase almost completely disappears. On the plus side, this teaches Jack a hard lesson about the fickle nature of fame and the need to stick with one's true friends.
* ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' takes this trope to [[{{Deconstruction}} the logical extreme]]. Initially, when Shinji first surpasses Asuka's synch ratio, she's just pissed at him. Later, after being [[CantCatchUp curbstomped three times in a row with Shinji always scoring the kill instead of her]], she becomes extremely distraught, due to her past: she always prided herself on being the best so that she [[IWorkAlone won't need any kind of help from anyone]]. By not being the best anymore and her rival consistently having a stellar performance, she's afraid of being put to the sidelines and as a result, her synch ratio is plummeting; seeing this, she also becomes afraid that if she drops low enough, she will be relieved of her duties which to her would be equal to being publicly humiliated in the worst way possible for a human. And the best part in all of this? '''She knows what's wrong but her pride doesn't let her admit it to herself.''' Oh, it gets even ''better''. Right after her third defeat (technically second since she couldn't attack Leliel, much less harm it), she's sent into battle again, knowing that this is the last chance the NERV leadership is giving for her: if she screws up this time, it's game over. Not only she doesn't get a single shot off at Arael, '''she undergoes the {{Trope Namer|s}} for MindRape instead'''. And she gets saved by the person she hates the most. Next time she's sent up against Armisael, she can't even get her Eva to move anymore and is withdrawn; as an indirect result, Rei-II is killed by the Angel despite Shinji's intervention ("you didn't send him out for me... am I really that worthless?"). What do NERV does in this situation? Do they try to solve Asuka's psychological problems and cheer her up? [[ThereAreNoTherapists Noooo]], [[WeHaveReserves they send her into early retirement and fetch a replacement instead]] - ''[[AntiVillain who just so happens to be the final Angel]]''.
* Invoked in ''Manga/Eyeshield21''. It's made clear that many of the teams have players who are on their last chance to make it to the finals, and none of them are content with being 2nd.

* ''Anime/TigerAndBunny'' has [[spoiler:[[TheAce Keith Goodman/Sky High]]]] struggling with this after [[spoiler:Barnaby Brooks Jr. takes his place as the highest-ranking superhero]]. However, being the NiceGuy to end all {{Nice Guy}}s, he's not angry over no longer being the best so much as he's afraid that he can no longer live up to the expectations people have for him.
* Saber Tooth's guild master in ''Manga/FairyTail'' believes this to the point that the guild model is effectively "To be the strongest". To drive the point home, [[{{Jerkass}} he expels anyone who loses during the Grand Magic Games in the most humiliating way possible]].
* Ayaka, the protagonist of ''Manga/KissAndWhiteLilyForMyDearestGirl'', considers being second in the exams the ultimate dishonor and will work herself to death to repair this anomaly. Even when the n°1 is TheAce and almost had ''the maximum score'' minus 2 points. Yurine wishes nothing more than for Ayaka to best her though, and falls in love with her partly for this reason.

* In ''Manga/AssassinationClassroom'', the principal of the high school, Asano Sr, has this mentality despite preaching that "everyone has a chance to get better". However whenever E-Class starts pulling ahead, he goes to utterly ridiculous lengths just to smack them down. Hell, when his son even came in first on two separate occasions (during 1st semester finals and during a festival event), it's still not enough for him because it's not a ''complete'' victory due to E-Class coming close to beating him. [[spoiler: When E-Class trounces A-Class in the second semester finals, he responds by ''[[SoreLoser trying to demolish the E-Class building]]''.]]
* In ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'', one league contender believes hard in this -- Guzma in ''Sun and Moon'' (as Plumeria finds out seeing dozens of broken second place trophies and silver medals in his room), which may explain why [[spoiler:he broke off from his apprenticeship with Hala]] and formed Team Skull.
* ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'': Endeavor is one of the greatest superheroes on Earth, beloved and feared in equal measure, but none of it is good enough for him because [[AlwaysSecondBest he's stuck in second place in official rankings to All Might]]. His obsession with getting out of second place leads to him being an [[AbusiveParents absolutely horrible]] father and husband to his family, while also pushing himself past the breaking point, all in the name of glory. [[spoiler:He gets his wish when All Might is forced into retirement after an especially grueling battle... [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor and utterly hates it]], knowing that he didn't properly earn first place and [[HeelRealization realizing that he was being a hero for all the wrong reasons]] (as well as how much everybody despises him because of it).]]
* In ''Manga/AsteroidInLove'', Because of her [[SweetBaker upbringing]], Moe is extremely confident of her pastry-making skills among her peers. As a result, her moon-phase pancake getting the second place during the SchoolFestival's booth food competition sends her to HeroicBSOD for a few days.

* An ''ComicBook/ArchieComics'' story in the 1970s had Reggie, Riverdale High's ace athlete, suffering a sprained ankle just before a decathlon competition against Central High. Archie is recruited to replace Reggie with the result of Archie coming in second and third, time after time, event after event. But this competition is judged on the points system. Dilton Doiley points out that Archie's constant second and third place finishes add up which gives Riverdale High the victory. Reggie--on crutches--is livid as Archie is hoisted on the shoulders of the school faculty in victory.
* This is basically Characters/DoctorDoom's fatal flaw. Yes, he's a brilliant scientist, a powerful sorcerer, and the ruler of a successful nation... but because there's always ''someone'' who is [[AlwaysSecondBest better than him]] at each of those things ([[Characters/FantasticFourTheFantasticFour Reed Richards]], ComicBook/DoctorStrange, [[ArchEnemy Reed Richards]], ComicBook/BlackPanther, and ''especially'' [[RuleOfThree Reed Richards]]) his ego does not allow him to leave well enough alone. Never mind that his rivals only best him in one field each, being merely a MasterOfAll just isn't good enough for him.

* Subverted in ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'' at the end, when Dash (who has SuperSpeed and could win extremely easily) deliberately takes second place in a race to maintain the {{masquerade}}. Dash was more interested in the socialization than the actual race.
* In Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'', Phil's training song talks about wanting a more successful protege. [[PainfulRhyme "The kind who wins trophies, won't settle for low-phies, at least semi-pro-phies, but no!]] [[VisualPun I get the greenhorn!"]] As he sings, Phil receives AmusingInjuries after polishing an old trophy a student won for 11th place.
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirlsFriendshipGames'': Crystal Prep has this mentality, with Cinch encouraging it to keep the school's spotless winning streak intact. [[spoiler:After she realizes CHS has access to magic, she pressures Human Twilight into using the magic she collected to even the odds, which has [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity disastrous consequences]].]]
* ''Franchise/{{Cars}}'': Subverted in the first film, where Lightning McQueen doesn't get first place [[spoiler:Because he stopped short of the finish line and reversed to help an injured King cross it for his final race, allowing Chick Hicks, who had caused King to be injured, to cross first.]] Despite this, McQueen is still offered the chance to be Dinoco's spokescar, because in the owner's own words, "There's more to racing than just winning".

* In ''Film/TheKarateKidPartII'', Johnny Lawrence, the Cobra Kai bully from the first film, seemed to be okay with his 2nd place trophy, but Sensei Kreese wasn't. In fact, Kreese smashes the trophy and physically attacks his student so viciously that Mr. Miyagi has to step in and teach him some manners.
* Mentioned in ''Film/TopGun'', although it's a marginal case. On the one hand, only top-performing crews are selected to compete, so just ''going'' is an achievement in itself, making the line "There are no points for second place" ring a little hollow. But on the other, it is combat training, and second place in a real firefight means you're either hors de combat or dead – in which case, the aforementioned line is a simple statement of fact.
** Ultimately averted in the movie. The protagonist Maverick doesn’t win the trophy, because a fatal crash that kills his GuyInBack causes him to lose confidence and drop out - but with enough points accrued so far to still graduate. His rival Iceman wins the trophy. But then Maverick saves the day in an actual dogfight and gets the prize Iceman is entitled to - a billet as a Top Gun instructor.
** Averted in the actual Top Gun school: Pilots are sent to the school to learn dissimilar combat training skills, which they return to their squadrons to teach to the other pilots in their squadron. There is no contest nor a trophy. In essence, Top Gun is a school to teach fighter pilots how to teach. If it were a contest, pilots would go to extremes to win instead of learning techniques to teach their squadron mates.

* Famously subverted in ''Film/{{Rocky}}'', where the film wasn't about Rocky winning, but showing that he was able to go the distance in a boxing match against World Heavyweight Champion Apollo Creed despite what everyone believed. although the sequels tilt toward it.

'''Jerome:''' Are you colorblind, too? It's silver. Jerome Morrow was never meant to be second place.

* Played with in ''Film/TheWildOne'': one of Johnny's gang steals the second-place trophy from a local motorcycle race and gives it to him; Johnny complains, "Why didn't you steal first?" "It was too big." Johnny displays the trophy prominently on his bike.
* ''Film/TalladegaNightsTheBalladOfRickyBobby'' "If you ain't first, you're last." Ricky Bobby bases his entire life on this one phrase his father told him and earnestly believes it to the point that he can't deal with the idea of someone being better than him. He has a nervous breakdown when he wrecks in his first race against Jean Girard and needs training just to know how to go fast again. [[spoiler:Subverted later on in the movie when Ricky's Dad says "Oh hell, Son, I was high that day. That doesn't make any sense at all, you can be second, third, fourth... hell, you can even be fifth."]]

* Averted in ''Film/FiredUp'', in which a perpetually losing squad [[spoiler:ends up nineteenth in a tournament, but the captain feels it's an accomplishment because it's ten places better than the previous year]].

* Dylan Chu's father in ''Film/AkeelahAndTheBee'' makes it clear that to him, getting 2nd for the 3rd time in this spelling bee will make him "2nd your whole life!"
* ''Film/GlengarryGlenRoss'', both the film and play, deal with a struggling real estate sales agency. The head office sends a big shot who flaunts his wealth and success while describing a change to the ongoing sales contest. First prize, as before, is a Cadillac. Second is a set of steak knives. Third is you're fired. By the way, there are ''four'' salesmen in the agency. It is well worth watching simply for its amazing cast.
* Miranda Frost in ''Film/DieAnotherDay'' betrayed her country solely because she got a silver medal in the Olympics, and the villain of the movie offered to make it look like the gold winner cheated.
* This is the primary motivation for Eddie Felson throughout ''Film/TheHustler'' -- it's not enough that he's already a great pool player, he ''must'' defeat Minnesota Fats and have Fats acknowledge him as the best.

* Averted in ''[[Film/Rush2013 Rush]]'': James managed to fight his way to a high enough position to take the championship from Niki at the final race in Japan, but Niki [[spoiler: (who suffered a massive crash that burned him alive midway through the season, and who later withdrew from the Japanese GP because he felt it was too dangerous)]] was just glad he was alive to try again next year and tells his wife Marlene he has no regrets [[spoiler:about withdrawing from Japan]]. For what it's worth, Niki was ''defending'' champion, and would later get two more titles in real life.
* Played with in ''Film/BeyondTheLights''. Ten-year-old Noni is proud to be named the first runner-up in a talent contest. [[StageMom Macy]], on the other hand, is so disgusted that she forces her daughter to chuck her trophy.
* In ''Film/SeasonOfMiracles'', Zack and his dad are both believers in this trope. When Zack says, "Third place feels like I... failed," his dad says, "Good! It's first place or nothing, son! That's the American way!"

* In the ''Series/RedDwarf'' novel ''Backwards'', a scene in Rimmer's childhood shows him nearly winning a race before another boy trips him up, and we're told his father's favourite phrase is "Winning isn't everything, but losing is nothing". But then we're shown Ace Rimmer in the same sports day, and he ''throws'' the race, because he realises another boy really ''needs'' to win it. While his mother stares in disbelief, he thinks "After all, losing is nothing."

* Subverted in ''Bill's New Frock'' by Anne Fine. During a race in gym class, all the other kids agree that they will let a disabled boy win, but because of this trope, Bill can't bear to come second and so he speeds up and wins. However, the disabled boy is ''thrilled'' with second place because it's the best performance he has ever made in the class.

* In one ''Literature/TheAmazingDaysOfAbbyHayes,'' [[ItsAllAboutMe Brianna]] gets the second-most-important role of Wendy in a school production of ''Theatre/PeterPan,'' but isn't satisfied because she didn't get the title role.

* The Creator/GordonKorman book ''The D- Poems of Jeremy Bloom: A Collection of Poems About School, Homework, and Life (Sort Of)'' includes a subversion in the form of the poem "The Olympian", in which Jeremy claims he's in training to become the greatest athlete of all time (though also admitting he stinks at every sport). The subversion comes in that while stating that he'll come in first in nearly everything, he freely admits that he'll gladly accept a bronze medal in boxing, having been knocked out by a three-year-old during practice.

* It's a theme in the second season of ''Series/SportsNight''. An athlete sets a new world record during a long jump competition; five minutes later, another athlete breaks this new record and wins the gold. Dan tells his therapist that no one will ever remember the first guy because he lost.
* Several people who came in second for reality TV shows such as ''Series/{{Survivor}}'' and the American ''Series/BigBrother'' have acted like they lost the game because they didn't win.
** Notably averted on ''Series/TheAmazingRace'', where second place teams rarely ever take it badly. Of course, there is the occasional racer like Boston Rob who accuses the producers of fixing the race against him. But then, considering what other [[Series/{{Survivor}} reality show he finished second on...]]
*** When RealityTV contestants go on a show after they get kicked off/voted out etc. (like doing an appearance on ''Creator/DavidLetterman'' or ''Series/{{Today}}'') they'll have all of the losing contestants...until the GrandFinale where the winner is announced. Then they'll only have the winner on, never mind the 2nd place (and possibly 3rd & 4th) who were established during the same show.
** In ''Series/{{Survivor}}'', Russell Hantz won second place in ''Samoa'', then third in ''Heroes vs. Villains''. After ''Samoa'', he acted like he was slapped in the face and practically ''murdered'' when he came in second out of ''twenty'' people, then third out of ''twenty people'', all of which were former players and several of which were considered the ''best''. however when he won the Sprint player of the year award, he ''immediately'' begun the typical Victory dance in ''Heroes vs. Villains''.
** Russell basically acted like a terrible sport in Heroes vs. Villains. Instead of congratulating Sandra in not angering potential votes, Russell began to attack the game ''itself'' saying that it was "Flawed" if someone who played differently than him could ''win'', and immediately proposing an alternative rule(set) that would most ''definitely'' favour ''him''. Basically, he came across as someone who played the game well and deserved more recognition from the fellow players...or a ''terrible'' sport who needs to learn that the game is ''not'' just played his way.
* ''Franchise/PowerRangers'':
** ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers'' has its famous ''Green With Evil'' storyline that introduced the very first SixthRanger. It begins with Jason facing Tommy, a new kid in town, in a martial arts contest which ultimately ends in a tie. As Jason returns to his friends, the first words that come out of his mouth are "I didn't win." Granted, he doesn't dwell on it anymore after this one moment, but it's still an odd thing for a character like Jason to be concerned about.
** In ''Series/PowerRangersNinjaSteel'', resident egotistical JerkJock Victor Vincent loses his title as the school's tennis champion in "Abrakadanger". Subverted in that it's his sidekick Monty who is dismayed that "You came in last", while Victor, though still annoyed at his loss (since winning would have earned him his fiftieth trophy), accepts the ribbon and reminds Monty that "It says second".

* Played with on ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'': Bashir was second in his class, and outwardly kicked himself for the simple blunder on the test that caused him to be such. However, he reveals shortly that's it's part of how he comes on to girls. Plus after the RetCon about his "enhancements," it may be that he deliberately made the mistake as to keep his cover.
** Even before the reveal, its lampshaded that a preganglionic fiber and a postganglionic nerve are nothing alike and a student of his caliber couldn't have mistaken them, suggesting some motive or psychology for throwing the test.

* Normally averted on ''[[Series/RuPaulsDragRace RuPaul's Drag Race]]'', where simply appearing on the show is enough to grant a DragQueen superstar status in the gay community and nightclub circuit. However, Season 4 runner-up Chad Michaels did little to hide her disappointment at losing to Sharon Needles. When Chad reappeared on ''All Stars'', she joked that Sharon was "borrowing" her crown and the other queens commented that she seemed to be still sore about losing. She would go on to win the ''All Stars'' season, but a UsefulNotes/{{Conspiracy Theor|ies}}y is that [=RuPaul=] only conceived of it in the first place as a ConsolationPrize for Chad.
** Season 5 runner-up Alaska Thunderfuck had a very similar attitude about losing the crown to Jinkx Monsoon. When she went on to win ''All Stars 2'', it was considered by fans to be just as much of a consolation prize as ''All Stars 1'' was for Chad. Queens in later seasons have been much more gracious about their placement, for the most part.
* This is Archer's attitude in an episode of ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'', where he's is remembering humanity's first Warp 3 flight. Archer is upset to be passed over for the test flight. When a bartender points out that he'll probably fly the next one, Archer asks her if she knows what Buzz Aldrin said after stepping on the Moon. She doesn't. Archer says that no one does, because Neil Armstrong was first. His attitude changes later, though. In fact, he ends up captaining Starfleet's first Warp 5-capable ship.

* Related to this: ''VideoGame/KatamariDamacy'' has [[SpiritedCompetitor Royal Second Cousin Miki]], who always tries to at least make the top three but tends to end up around sixth place.
** Also featured in the story of ''We Love Katamari''. As a child, The King of All Cosmos took second place in a boxing tournament - while walking home, his father pitches the silver trophy in the river to the King's dismay. [[spoiler: Later, the King and his father get in a fight - when the King goes to apologize, he sees his father looking at the silver trophy, and realises that his father must have fished it out of the river.]] This may also explain the King's attitude towards the player if he turns in a small katamari.
-->'''The King of All Cosmos:''' If We were doing it, it would be much, much bigger.\\
'''The King of All Cosmos:''' Is this all you want out of life? Mediocrity?
* In one mission in ''VideoGame/EliteBeatAgents'', you are trying to get a runner with a cold back to health in order to win the big race. Depending on how well you do, he reacts with roughly equal enthusiasm to winning Gold or Silver but is very distraught to have only won 3rd, even if that is pretty good for someone who just got over a cold.
* In the ''VideoGame/HarvestMoon'' and ''VideoGame/RuneFactory'' series, winning a contest gets you high praise and affection from the other villagers. Don't win, even finishing in second, and everyone (even your spouse, if present) reacts in the same "You lost? You suck!" manner, whether it was second place or dead last.

* In ''VideoGame/TalesOfGraces'', this is what prompted Hubert to grow from whiny crybaby to freaking general badass.
* In the [[RacingMinigame racing minigames]] from ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy'' and ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy2'', Mario must beat all the [=NPCs=] in a race first to obtain the Power Star. If he falls in second or below, then [[DrivenToSuicide he will lose a life]].
* ''VideoGame/TheAdventuresOfWillyBeamish'' actually averts this. The Tootsweet Frog Jump is considered a big deal where Horny ''must'' beat Turbofrog, but you can keep going in the game if you only make second place, as you still win enough money to enter the Nintari championship, plus the jet-ski you need [[spoiler:to reach Humpford Manor]].
* In ''R4: VideoGame/RidgeRacer Type 4'', the first two races require a 3rd place finish or better, the next two require 2nd or better, and the final four require first-place finishes. In the races where you can qualify without getting first, doing so will result in some pretty upset comments from your crew. (Failing to qualify will just take you to a retry/quit screen with no commentary.)
* At the end of ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'', Professor Oak gives Blue a speech on how disappointed he is in him, and how he needs to learn to treat Pokémon well like Red does, almost completely ignoring how Blue's methods got him past all the gyms and the Elite Four, and he'd still be Kanto's champion if Red hadn't shown up. Given that Blue is a complete asshole who lost to Red every time they met, there's definitely ''something'' wrong with both his technique and him as a person.
* In ''The Fast And The Furious'' ([=PS2=]) you can only fight against other cars. Since there is always only one other car you race against this means that ending second place will always be a failure.
* From ''VideoGame/MarioKartDoubleDash'' until ''VideoGame/MarioKart7'', it was absolutely necessary to win gold trophies in Grand Prix mode if one wanted to unlock new characters, karts, and cups (though since ''7'' forgoes pre-built karts for customizable karts, unlocking all but three parts comes down to collecting a certain amount of coins, a system that continues in ''VideoGame/MarioKart8''). ''Mario Kart 8'' averts this, though, as placing anywhere between 1st-3rd will unlock a random character, as well as unlocking cups and mirror mode (update 4.2, though, makes mirror mode a default engine class).
* The first ''VideoGame/LegoRacers'' back in 2000s did the same, where finishing second only unlocks the next championship event instead of the character and bricksets, and finishing second in an event usually concluded with the player character being angry of, well, finishing second.
* In ''[[VideoGame/SegaSuperstars Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed]]'', upon finishing a race, if your character takes 1st place, he or she (or it) will be happy and excited. Taking any other position, however, including 2nd, will have them look disappointed and depressed. Contrast this to the VideoGame/MarioKart series, where characters are pleased as long as they didn't place in the bottom half of the positions.

* ''VideoGame/PokemonSwordAndShield'' takes this literally in the Rotom Loto-ID. The fourth and third-place prizes are a PP Up and a PP Max, respectively--useful items and difficult to find anywhere else. First place, as usual, is the coveted Master Ball. Second place, though, is a Rare Candy. In older games, this would have been a decent reward, but the newly-added Max Raids bombard you with so many XP Candies that the classic Rare Candy is practically worthless, other than as a moderately uncommon collectible.

* Eduardo from WebAnimation/EddsWorld takes this philosophy to heart, though it’s eventually revealed that it’s [[spoiler: due to constant bullying as a kid due to coming in second place in an art contest]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'' shows Gumball's mother Nicole grew up to believe this trope was "first place for losers" by her overbearing and controlling parents, ([[InsaneTrollLogic besides telling her that being female is no excuse for getting an "F" in ''gender'']]). She is shown to shut off her parents' comments, though.
* ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'':
** Subverted when Hank doesn't win a shooting competition, and his [[WellDoneSonGuy dad won a bet he wouldn't]]. Then Bobby walks up and says, "Wow, Dad. Second place in a ''real competition''." It's worth noting that Hank was established throughout the episode as being a really crummy shot to begin with, and was only worried about letting his own son down.
** Happens in a later episode where Bobby takes to growing roses and fails in a florist competition. He's disappointed and depressed about it but shocked when he sees Hank (who he actively hid his roses from in the beginning) planting his flowers in the garden. When Bobby asks why he'd do this even if he didn't win, Hank explains, "Well, the Cowboys don't win every game, but I still cheer them on year after year."

* Taken to the extreme in ''Franchise/{{Peanuts}}'' whenever Charlie Brown comes second...
** ''You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown'' shows Charlie Brown coming in second in the spelling bee and the rest of the kids giving him hell for it.
** In ''WesternAnimation/ABoyNamedCharlieBrown'', Charlie Brown makes it to the National Spelling Bee Championship (having won the State one) and comes second, only for everyone to see him as a miserable failure. However, this is a rather bizarre conclusion considering that, while misspelling a relatively easy word like "beagle" is embarrassing (especially when his pet Snoopy is one), the fact remains that Charlie Brown beat almost everyone else ''in the entire country''. Surely that should count for something?
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'':
** Mocked in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS10E20TheOldManAndTheCStudent The Old Man and the C-Student]]", when the Olympics commissioner reaffirms the purpose of the Games: "giving out medals of beautiful gold, so-so silver, and shameful bronze."
** Also in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS6E2LisasRival Lisa's Rival]]" when she considers her predicament:
--->'''Lisa:''' Hey, I am above average! So what if Alison's ahead of me? There's no shame in being second.\\
''[ImagineSpot with Lisa and a band in front of a large audience]''\\
'''Announcer:''' And now, Avis Rent-A-Car is proud to present the [[AlwaysSecondBest second best band in America]]. Will you welcome Garfunkel, Messina, Oates, and Lisa singing their number two hit, "Born to Runner-up".\\
''[Band plays; audience boos loudly]''\\
'''Lisa:''' [[LampshadeHanging Why would they come to our concert just to boo us]]?
** Inverted in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS14E12ImSpellingAsFastAsICan I'm Spelling As Fast As I Can]]". Lisa gets second place in the Spellympics and is hailed as a winner in Springfield--after all, second place makes her "the biggest winner this town's ever produced". Heck, because she lost honorably instead of taking a bribe to take a dive, they fashion a sign that says: "2 good 2 be #1."
** Parodied in "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS5E15DeepSpaceHomer Deep Space Homer]]." One of the astronauts coming along on the mission is Buzz Aldrin, who insists that "second comes right after first," leading to awkward glances between the other characters.

* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/CourageTheCowardlyDog'' had [[CatsAreMean Katz]] attempting revenge on Muriel because he always came in second to her in Nowhere's cooking contests.
-->'''Katz:''' ''[Receiving 2nd place trophy]'' Sad, isn't it?
* Played with on ''WesternAnimation/TheWeekenders''. Tino got 3rd place in a horseshoes competition, during a weekend sports meet, which he was pretty proud of, considering he took up the sport that weekend. His friends didn't see what the big deal was, since he didn't win. Probably had to do with the fact that they all won their competitions.
* The Misfits from ''WesternAnimation/{{Jem}}'' were the number one band in America until Jem and the Holograms came along. Even then, they're just barely in second place. Despite this, they [[SoreLoser absolutely hate being second]] and are frequently trying to dethrone Jem's band (usually by violence or other improper means). When it comes to their lead singer Pizzazz, this is related to her FreudianExcuse. Her mother [[ParentalAbandonment abandoned her]] and her father when she was young and her father [[ParentalNeglect was very distant]] and preferred to throw presents at her rather than spend time with her. She came to [[AttentionWhore crave attention]] and uses her fans as a substitute for it. Pizzazz wants to be the number one band and won't take second place. In one episode The Misfits lost a contest with the Holograms where the objective was to sell more records, losing by ''one sale''. Stormer even reminded her two friends that they had managed to sell a million albums (the equivalent of a platinum) but Pizzazz was ''still'' furious.

* ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'':
** ''American Dad'' shows Stan Smith as a living embodiment of the trope. Stan believes that when it comes to sports, you either win or you're just a pathetic loser. The episode "Every Which Way But Lose" has Stan constantly belittling his son, Steve, for not coming in 1st place in any sport. When Steve teams up with Roger and beats Stan's team in a football game, Stan takes the loss so badly that he almost commits suicide, believing he would rather die than to live life with a loss on his record.
** Also played with in an episode where Stan goes with Francine to her high school reunion, happy that he's married to the homecoming queen. Francine points out that she only won by one vote, and the runner-up had gone on to be fat, unattractive, and miserable since (she left the prom to eat at a Dunkin Donuts). But when the ballot box is shown, two uncounted votes for the runner-up are discovered. Francine happily gives her tiara to her, while Stan is unhappy to learn that he didn't marry the homecoming queen after all.
** The mother of Steve's Japanese friend Toshi, and his on-off-again romantic interest Akiko believes in this trope wholeheartedly, being a TigerMom EducationMama who relentlessly pressures her daughter to study and work on countless competitions. When Steve beats Akiko in a spelling bee, Steve ends up forfeiting the win to her when he sees her mother openly berate her and promising to be even stricter from now on. Strangely, this ONLY applies to Akiko, as the mother is never seen doing much parenting with Toshi.

%%* Famously subverted in ''Film/{{Rocky}}'', although the sequels tilt toward it.

* The first Videogame/LegoRacers back in 2000s did the same, where finishing second only unlocks the next championship event instead of the character and bricksets, and finishing second in an event usually concluded with the player character being angry of, well, finishing second.

* NFL quarterback Creator/TomBrady has gathered a reputation as a SoreLoser who never congratulates any team that beats him in a game, including and ''especially'' if the match is the Super Bowl.

* In ''Manga/AssassinationClassroom'', the principal of the high school, Asano Sr, has this mentality despite preaching that "everyone has a chance to get better". However whenever E-Class starts pulling ahead, he goes to utterly ridiculous lengths just to smack them down. Hell, when his son even came in first on two separate occasions (during 1st semester finals and during a festival event), it's still not enough for him because it's not a ''complete'' victory due to E-Class coming close to beating him. [[spoiler: When E-Class trounces A-Class in the second semester finals, he responds by ''[[SoreLoser trying to demolish the E-Class building]]'']].

* This is basically ComicBook/DoctorDoom's fatal flaw. Yes, he's a brilliant scientist, a powerful sorcerer, and the ruler of a successful nation... but because there's always ''someone'' who is [[AlwaysSecondBest better than him]] at each of those things ([[ComicBook/MisterFantastic Reed Richards]], ComicBook/DoctorStrange, [[ArchEnemy Reed Richards]], ComicBook/BlackPanther, and ''especially'' [[RuleOfThree Reed Richards]]) his ego does not allow him to leave well enough alone. Never mind that his rivals only best him in one field each, being merely a MasterOfAll just isn't good enough for him.

* Mexican side Cruz Azul won their last [=LigaMX=] championship in 1997 until 2021. They reached the finals six times in between (1999, 2008-I, 2008-II, 2009-I, 2013-II, 2018-I), losing them all. What makes it more aggravating is that in most of those tournaments (and in 2011-I, where they didn't reach the final) they '''completely''' dominated the table and showed the makings of champions, only to lose them miserably in the final. A verb ("Cruzazulear" or ''to-Cruz-Azul'') has been colloquially coined by Mexican fans to describe domineering teams that lose at the very last minute. And is now ''an officially recognized Spanish word''.

* A ''Film/{{Downfall}}'' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnYDXxjOKCM parody video]] showing ''TabletopGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' guild SK Gaming reacting to their rival Nihilum getting the World First defeat of the Eredar Twins in Sunwell Plateau has Hitler/bds yelling "Shut up Mackelina you faggot! Second place is for fucking losers".

* Taken to the extreme in ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' whenever Charlie Brown comes second...

** Mocked in "The Old Man And The C-Student", when the Olympics commissioner reaffirms the purpose of the Games: "giving out medals of beautiful gold, so-so silver, and shameful bronze."
** Also in "Lisa's Rival" when she considers her predicament:

** Inverted in "I'm Spelling As Fast As I Can". Lisa gets second place in the Spellympics and is hailed as a winner in Springfield--after all, second place makes her "the biggest winner this town's ever produced". Heck, because she lost honorably instead of taking a bribe to take a dive, they fashion a sign that says: "2 good 2 be #1."
** Parodied in "Deep Space Homer." One of the astronauts coming along on the mission is Buzz Aldrin, who insists that "second comes right after first," leading to awkward glances between the other characters.

* Buzz Aldrin was described by Michael Collins as letting his disappointment at not being ''first'' on the moon, to cause him not to appreciate being second. Aldrin had lobbied hard to be the first man, and there were several arbitrary factors that led to the decision to have Neil Armstrong go first instead (the positioning of the two men in the capsule, plus Aldrin being an Air Force officer, which would've made his going first seem like a military statement during the UsefulNotes/ColdWar).[[note]]That said, once Armstrong got the nod, he was given the choice to replace Aldrin with Jim Lovell on the mission because of the possible tension, but Armstrong elected to keep Aldrin[[/note]] Oddly, Aldrin's legacy probably ended up stronger ''because'' of the novelty of having ''almost'' the been first to walk on the moon, coupled with his outgoing, colorful personality (like punching a guy who claimed he didn't go to the moon). With the quieter, more reclusive Armstrong generally staying out of the spotlight, Aldrin filled a bit of a void among the Apollo 11 crew. Meanwhile the other Apollo astronauts who made it to the moon felt lucky to have been on the moon at all.

* The Argentina National Football Team is considered one of the most important national teams in the world and a powerhouse of South American football ever since its inception. However, the last international championship they've won has been the 1993 Copa América. Ever since then, they've reached four Copa América finals (2004, 2007, 2015, 2016) and a FIFA World Cup final (2014) and lost them all while boasting some of the highest-profiled, highest-paid, and most celebrated players in the world in their ranks ever since the '90s. Though there have been call-outs about the players' lack of commitment to the national colors, it's largely blamed on AFA's mismanagement of the team and lackluster oversight over benefits and logistics.

* Mexican side Cruz Azul won their last [=LigaMX=] championship in 1997, and never again. They have reached the finals six times ever since then (1999, 2008-I, 2008-II, 2009-I, 2013-II, 2018-I), losing them all. What makes it more aggravating is that in most of those tournaments (and in 2011-I, where they didn't reach the final) they '''completely''' dominated the table and showed the makings of champions, only to lose them miserably in the final. A verb ("Cruzazulear" or ''to-Cruz-Azul'') has been colloquially coined by Mexican fans to describe domineering teams that lose at the very last minute. And is now ''an officially recognized Spanish word''.

* Buzz Aldrin was described by Michael Collins as letting his disappointment at not being ''first'' on the moon, to cause him not to appreciate being second. However, many people ''do'' remember him as being the man who was ''almost'' the first to walk on the moon (among other things, such as punching a guy who claimed he didn't go to the moon; Aldrin certainly cashed in on Neil Armstrong becoming reclusive to escape being just a footnote), while the other 10 men on that ship generally feel lucky to have been on the moon at all.

* In Manga/{{Bakuman}} Mashiro and Takagi are crushed to learn that they got third place with "The World is All About Money And Intelligence," (losing to [[TheRival Eiji]] and someone else) even though it surpasses all their previous efforts since it means they will not be able to submit it for serialization. Otherwise, this trope is largely averted with a few exceptions (mainly Iwase), as when the main characters are starting out and want to get up past ninth place, Miura tells them that rather than try desperate tactics to go up, they should maintain their ranking, as anything above 10th place will not come up for cancellation.

* ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'': Kagami’s mother has this idea drilled into her daughter’s head, insisting that a Tsurugi has to be the best at what they do. Because of this, Kagami felt shame when she thought she had lost a fencing match, and even said in her family, “there are no second chances”.

Some real-life athletes feel that way quite deeply, coming so close and yet missing the mark. For example, one scientific study analyzed photographs of the facial expressions of many Olympians as they learned how they had placed. Gold of course was almost always ecstatic, and Bronze medalists were happy to have placed at all, but a Silver winner usually showed disappointment or dejection at coming in second best, unless it was their first time competing. This is especially true in tournament-style sports where the bronze team had won their game, but the silver medalists ''lost'' the game for gold. And then the presentation ceremony takes place immediately upon conclusion of the last match, giving the runners-up no time to compose themselves and put on a sporting face.

** In another case in gymnastics, two Russian gymnasts won silver and bronze in the 2012 women's all-around final. Silver medalist Viktoria Komova was in tears after losing to American Gabby Douglas. On the other hand, bronze medalist Aliya Mustafina was quite happy after winning a tie-break against American Aly Raisman.

* Touched on in ''WesternAnimation/{{Daria}}'''s MusicalEpisode, where [[{{Workaholic}} Helen]] and [[TheFashionista Quinn]] have a DistantDuet about their [[NotSoDifferent similar]] drives to succeed in their chosen fields:

* Nike famously misread their target market with their advertising campaign featuring Andre Agassi that ran during the 1996 Summer [[UsefulNotes/OlympicGames Olympics]] in Atlanta with the tagline "You don't win silver, you lose gold." A huge backlash condemning the campaign for being against the Olympic spirit led to it being swiftly withdrawn and [[LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain never mentioned again]].

* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' had an episode where, after scoring second-highest on an exam, one character was told by his mother "that would make you the winning loser." Said boy then strikes a vendetta against the top scorer, who happens to be Batman's best friend. To point out how ridiculously high the standards of the guy's mom were, he got 2391 out of 2400. The only person above him got a perfect score.

** Mocked when the Olympics commissioner reaffirms the purpose of the Games: "giving out medals of beautiful gold, so-so silver, and shameful bronze."

** The 2015 Carolina Panthers were one of only seven NFL teams in history to win 15 games in a regular season. Little is remembered about that season today except for a sullen press conference by quarterback Cam Newton following a 24-10 loss to the Broncos in Super Bowl 50 (which proved to be Manning's final game).

* In ''Anime/GirlsUndPanzer'', when Miho is considering surrendering in the match against Pravda because they're in a bad tactical situation and she doesn't want to get her teammates hurt, Momo reveals that Oarai ''has'' to win because the school is on the verge of being shut down and a special deal was made to keep it open if they get first place.

* On ''Series/{{Glee}}'', it's considered a failure if a show choir does not come in first place at Nationals. It doesn't matter how highly they did place, or that competition is not the focus of show choir; if they don't place at the very top, they might as well be at the bottom.

''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'': Kagami’s mother has this idea drilled into her daughter’s head, insisting that a Tsurugi has to be the best at what they do. Because of this, Kagami felt shame when she thought she had lost a fencing match, and even said in her family, “there are no second chances”.