Chicago Sports Teams
The City of Chicago in the US state of Illinois is a city rich in sports and has a lot of professional teams. There are only ten US cities that have sports teams in all the five American main professional team sports namely football, baseball, soccer, hockey, and basketball. It is a city that has been named by Sporting News as the Best Sports City in 1993, 2006, & 2010.
Chicago was a convincing candidate for hosting the Summer Olympics in 2016 but lost out to Rio de Janeiro. Chicago played host several high profile sporting events like the 2006 Gay Games, Pan American Games in 1959, Special Olympics Summer World Games in 1968 and 1970 respectively, as well as the Warrior Games of 2017.
8. Chicago Bears
Chicago is represented by the Chicago Bears whose home turf is the Soldier Field. They among the original teams of the National Football League (NFL) and was founded by Halas in 1919. They also have the most players in the NFL Pro Hall of Fame with 26. They have won the super bowl once in 1985, Super Bowl XX, and made it again in 2006 but lost to the Indianapolis Colts. The Bears have an intense rivalry with the Green Bay Packers dating back to the 1920’s. Their field, Soldier Field, is named after those who serve in the armed forces and is close to Lake Michigan.
7. Chicago Cubs
Chicago is one of only four metro regions found in the United States of America to have two teams that play professionally in the Major League Baseball. This team’s home stadium, Wrigley Field, is located to the north of Lakeview. Its western part has now come to be referred to as “Wrigleyville”. The Cubs is the oldest team to play in the same city continuously since the NL was formed and are the oldest MLB team who have never changed cities from 1871 to date. The Cubs are the most successful Chicago sports team since 1876 having won three World Series. This baseball team is number five in the NL teams having garnered 16 pennants under its wings. Its main rival is the St. Louis Cardinals.
6. Chicago White Sox
The White Sox play in the MLB on account of them being members of the American League (AL), Central Division. The Sox’s home field is called the Guaranteed Rate Field located in the south of Armour Square. The White Sox side was created in the year 1901. The team has been in Chicago since the AL was created. They have also acquired three World Series titles and six AL pennants with the first in 1901. They are fifth in all-time victories in the AL and sixth pennant-wise.
5. Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are a member of the Eastern Conference Division of the league. Chicago Bulls was formed back in the year 1966 on January 16th. Chicago is famous for the Chicago Bulls who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) led by none other than the legendary Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. These two legends helped them to six championships in the NBA in two “threepeats” between 1991 and 1993. They repeated this impressive feat between 1996 and 1998. Currently, there is a newer generation of the Bulls which came out in 2005 and are called “Baby Bulls” who destroyed the defending champs, Miami Heat, in 2007. Their home games are played at the United Centre, a venue they share with the Chicago BlackHawks. The Bulls are fourth when it comes to the most valuable franchise according to a ranking by Forbes in 2017. Their fierce rivalry with the Detroit Pistons, New York Knicks, and Miami Heat is still on. Most Valuable Player of 2011, Derrick Rose, led them to the Eastern Finals. Unfortunately, they were defeated by their fierce rivals, the Miami Heat.
4. Chicago Blackhawks
Professionally, Chicago has one team in the National Hockey League called the Chicago Blackhawks. The Blackhawks are an Original Six side. They won the coveted Stanley Cup in plenty of years including 1934, 1938, 1961, 2010, 2013, and recently in 2015. They have a serious rivalry with another previous Original Six side called the Detroit Red Wings.
3. Chicago Fire
Compared to other sports in the US, it is fair to say that soccer is not as developed. However, recently, more attention is being put towards the development of this international sport. Not to lag behind, Chicago has been is participating in the growth of the sport by its representation in the MLS by the Chicago Fire. This soccer team has won a single MLS trophy and it has also won four US Open trophies since becoming a part of the MLS in 1998. Their only MLS title was won in 1998, the year that the Chicago Fire joined the MLS. Home games are played at the Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Chicago. Initially, they were playing at the Soldier Field with a bit of time spent playing at the Cardinal Stadium which is in Naperville.
2. Chicago Sky
Chicago Sky are a professional basketball team from Chicago, Illinois, that is known for its participation in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). The side was established back in the year 2005 just before the 2006 season began. Although they play in Chicago and share the same market as the Chicago Bulls, they are not affiliated in any way. The team won their maiden playoff spot in the history of their team on August 23, 2013. The side’s first WNBA Finals presence was on September 3, 2014.
1. Chicago Red Stars
The city is represented in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) by the Chicago Red Stars which was established back in 2006. The Red Stars play at the Toyota Park. Previously, the Red Stars played for the Women’s Professional Soccer, which is now defunct. Red Stars are one of the founding members of the Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) where they played in the years 2009 and 2010. In 2010, they quit the WPS due to financial problems and later elected to join the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL) in 2011. In 2012, they competed in the elite WPSL which existed for a single year. In 2013, they joined the NWSL.
