My friend and I have played countless games since about version 4.0. I'd say most recently, especially with the introduction of the civ + add-ons, no Civ reliably underperforms. Though some civs tend to be extremes of the spectrum. Such as the Sheim. Watch out for them as they will either be extremely backwards or a world power depending on how quickly they get their religious techs rolling and how good their starting position is.
Basically some civs are hard coded to aim for certain victory styles and if it is a difficult victory style to achieve, they may stagnate in their tunnel vision claim for glory. Same with the Amurites reaching for advanced magic early.