Move over, Chicago Fire FC, there’s a new football club in town. This summer, soccer fans all throughout the city will find themselves with a new soccer club to root for in Chicago House AC. This newest addition to the Chicago sports scene will host their home games at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview. And with the NISA season set to begin in August, there’s a good chance we could see some fans in the stands if city officials continue with their decisions to reopen stadiums as it becomes safer to do so. With a whole new franchise, roster, coaching staff, logo, and more, we’re here to help get you up to speed on all things Chicago House AC.

Why the Chicago House AC Name?

One of the first things you might find yourself wondering is, why did they name themselves Chicago House AC? It all started with management who wanted this new franchise to be part of the Chicago community. And in their effort to start that relationship off the right way, they turned to the fans for ideas on what to name the team. The name “Chicago House” was coined by Brian Costin, who said, “Chicago House music has always been about peace, love, and acceptance, and has influenced music culture all over the globe,” in a statement released by the club. Fan voting eventually whittled the options down to Chicago House and Point Chicago at the end, with Chicago House taking over as a heavy favorite.

After they found themselves with a new name, Chicago House AC needed a logo. The current design, which was also developed using fan submissions, ties the city’s history, musical culture, and sport into one. The lines form the letters ‘Ch’ and also represent the Chicago skyline. The colors of the logo have meaning too, with the black used to represent the city’s founder, Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, the green comes from the lion sculptures outside of the Art Institute of Chicago, and the rusty-orange pays tribute to the industrial past of the city.

Who’s On the Roster?

As of now, the club doesn’t have an official roster of players that’s available to the public. They’ll need to field a group of starters, backups, and a few goalies to make themselves competitive in the National Independent Soccer Association. Fortunately, Chicago House AC management will have until the end of summer to do so.

Speaking of management, that is something the club does have figured out. Peter Wilt is the clubs’ President and CEO, and Night Train Veeck will take on the Chief Operating Officer role. One notable name from the front office staff that Chicago soccer fans might recognize is head coach, CJ Brown. Brown is a former member of the Chicago Fire FC. He played for the club for 12 seasons back when they didn’t even have the ‘FC’ in their name. He leads the Fire franchise in games played and was inducted into the Chicago Fire’s Hall of Fame in 2012.

When Will They Take the Field?

Like the club roster, no official start date has been announced outside of August this year. The NISA will begin play for their spring Legends Cup tournament next month, but Chicago House AC will not participate. Despite the lack of an official schedule, fans have the opportunity to secure season tickets on the team’s website. It’ll only be a matter of time before they take the field!

The post Chicago House AC: The City’s Newest Franchise appeared first on UrbanMatter.

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It’s the greenest (and luckiest) time of the year! St. Patrick’s Day in Chicago is always the weekend before March 17th and most of us Chicagoans are ready to get our shamrock on. Although COVID is still a thing, there are plenty of restaurants and bars celebrating safely. Check ‘em out below. 

Wilde

This Irish bar and restaurant will be celebrating St. Paddy’s Day for two   whole   weeks.   Stop by now until March 17th for corned beef, pints of Guinness, Irish music and more. Sláinte!

Tuscan Hen

Craving an authentic St. Paddy’s Day meal? Tuscan Hen has you covered with their Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner. For just $18.95, you can enjoy House Braised Corned Beef, Cabbage, Carrots, Housemade Soda Bread, and a Bailey’s Irish Cream Cannoli. Learn more here.

Mac Wood’s Grilled

This Wicker Park hotspot is serving up traditional favorites: a Reuben Sandwich with Corned beef, Swiss, sauerkraut, and secret sauce, on marbled rye. And Creamy Potato Soup with Hickory-smoked peppered bacon, Cheddar Jack, and green onions. We’ll take both.

Vintage Bar

Hanging out in Little Italy? Get your shenanigans on with $4 green Miller Lites, $5 Irish Car Bombs, and $6 Guinness Pints. Or if you’re ~really~ looking to party, go for their $25 bottomless green mimosas. Irish today, hungover tomorrow. 

Pizza, Beer & Jukebox

If you’ll be in the West Loop on March 13, head over to PB&J for a pop-up St. Pat’s celebration. You know the drill: green beer, Red Bull cocktails, Guinness, and more specials. And if you run the St. Paddy’s Day 5K, congratulations. Also you’ll get a free beer. 

Stan’s Donuts

How sweet is this? Chicago’s iconic donut shop is dishing up green mint hot chocolate, Irish cream cold brew, mint Oreo shakes, and emerald-dipped donuts. Sugar crash in 3, 2, 1…totally worth it.

Cafe Robey

How to have the perfect St. Patty’s Day: secure a table at Cafe Robey. Order their Irish Patty Melt with Guinness Mayo. Wash it down with a few shots of Jameson (on special). And keep the party going by tacking on a few buckets of’ beer. Best. Day. EVER.

Lottie’s Pub

Don’t sleep on this Bucktown bar. Here’s what’s going down: a Guinness Glass Giveaway on March 12, Pot of Gold Trivia on March 15, and a Guinness jersey Giveaway on St. Patty’s Day. Make your reservations here. 

Rewired Pizza Cafe & Bar

Rewired Pizza Cafe & Bar, the new lowkey haunt in Edgewater, is celebrating St. Patrick’s Day all month long. Created by Bar Manager RC Schultz, the March themed cocktail is I’m Not Irish, But Drink This Anyway with vodka, crème de menthe liqueur, crème de cacao liqueur, cream, and Dolin Blanc vermouth ($9). From the coffee bar, guests can enjoy the Pot of Gold with thyme and star anise demerara, milk, espresso, and Lucky Charms (small: $4; medium: $4.50; large: $5). Chef Jesus Escobedo has also created festive Irish-themed food specials like a Reuben Pizza with sauerkraut, corned beef, Thousand Island dressing, mozzarella and Swiss cheese (small: $14; medium: $18; large: $22) and Green Mac & Cheese with cavatappi pasta, house made green cheese sauce and toasted bread crumbs ($10).

The Rambler Kitchen + Tap

For Chiagoans looking to spend the holiday at home, The Rambler will offer an “Irish Pub Experience at Home” To-Go Package from Saturday, March 13 through Wednesday, March 17. The $60 package is available to pre-order for pick up or delivery. The festive box will include Two Corned Beef Platters with slow cooked corned beef, red potato, and cabbage, a bottle of Bushmills Irish Whiskey, and a four pack of Guinness with two Guinness Imperial pint glasses, beads, tattoos and other St. Patrick’s Day decor. Patrons can opt to order the dinner for one person without alcohol for $16.

The Graystone Tavern

The post What’s Open in Chicago For St. Patrick’s Day This Year appeared first on UrbanMatter.

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Thursday, March 11, 2021

CATHOLIC – BLUE

Leo at Mount Carmel, PPD/CNL

DU PAGE VALLEY

Naperville North at Metea Valley, 7:00

INTERSTATE EIGHT

Sandwich at Morris, 6:00

LITTLE TEN

DePue at Leland, 5:30

Somonauk at Hiawatha, 7:00

MID-SUBURBAN – EAST

Rolling Meadows at Prospect, 7:30

NOBLE LEAGUE – WHITE

Golder at ITW-Speer, 7:00

NORTHEASTERN ATHLETIC

Parkview Christian at Christian Liberty, 7:30

NORTHERN LAKE COUNTY

Antioch at Grayslake North, 7:00

Grayslake Central at North Chicago, 7:00

Round Lake at Lakes, 6:45

Wauconda at Grant, 7:15

PUBLIC LEAGUE RED SOUTH-CENTRAL

Bogan at Phillips, 5:00

Kenwood at Hyde Park, 5:00

Morgan Park at Brooks, 7:00

Simeon at Corliss, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE WHITE-CENTRAL

Dunbar at Richards (Chgo), 5:00

Lindblom at Catalyst-Maria, 5:00

Solorio at King, 5:00

Tilden at Kennedy, 6:30

Urban Prep-Englewood at Hubbard, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE WHITE-SOUTH

Agricultural Science at ACE Amandla, 7:00

Carver at Dyett, 5:00

Fenger at Harlan, 5:00

Urban Prep-Bronzeville at South Shore, 5:00

Vocational at Perspectives-Lead, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE BLUE-CENTRAL

Horizon-Southwest at Hancock, 5:00

Kelly at Harper, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE BLUE-NORTH

Alcott at Amundsen, 5:00

PUBLIC LEAGUE BLUE-SOUTH

Chicago Military at Julian, 5:00

Washington at Bowen, 5:00

RIVER VALLEY

Tri-Point at Grant Park, 7:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – BLUE

Bremen at Hillcrest, 5:00

SOUTH SUBURBAN – RED

Argo at Evergreen Park, 7:30

SOUTH SUBURBAN – CROSSOVER

Eisenhower at Tinley Park, 6:00

Oak Forest at Oak Lawn, 6:00

Reavis at Lemont, 6:00

Thornton Fr. North at Shepard, 6:00

Thornton Fr. South at Richards, 6:30

NON CONFERENCE

Benet at Batavia, 7:00

Curie at St. Ignatius, 6:30

Harvest Christian at Elgin Academy, 5:00

IC Catholic at St. Joseph, 6:00

Latin at University High, 7:30

Serena at Woodland, 5:30

St. Edward at Yorkville Christian, CNL

Young at Marian Catholic, 7:30

CHICAGO PREP TOURNAMENT

Championship:

Christ the King at Hope Academy, 6:00

FOX VALLEY TOURNAMENT

Hampshire at McHenry, 7:00

Crystal Lake Central at Prairie Ridge, 7:00

Crystal Lake South at Dundee-Crown, 7:00

Semi-Finals:

Jacobs at Burlington Central, 7:00

Cary-Grove at Huntley, 7:00

SOUTHLAND TOURNAMENT

Thornridge at Crete-Monee, 4:30

Semi-Finals:

Rich at Kankakee, 7:00

Bloom at Thornton, 5:00

UPSTATE EIGHT TOURNAMENT

Glenbard East at South Elgin, 6:30

Glenbard South at Fenton, 7:00

Semi-Finals:

Streamwood at Bartlett, 7:30

East Aurora at Larkin, 6:00

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Chicago Bears: Is something big suddenly cooking at quarterback? by Ryan Heckman

For a long time, the Chicago Bears were dealing with a bad kicker situation. They signed Cory Parkey to be that guy before his terrible 2018 season. The problem is that he was a terrible kicker on a football team that went 12-4. It looked like a team that could need their kicker down the stretch and the writing was on the wall that he wouldn’t be able to handle it. Well, he sure wasn’t able to handle it as he doinked the game-winning Field Goal in their playoff game.

After that now infamous play, the Bears quickly became the punchline of kicking jokes. People still make fun of it today but the Bears don’t care. They have their guy. Cairo Santos was awesome for the Chicago Bears in 2020 and he is being rewarded for it.

According to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune, the Bears and Santos agreed on a 16 million dollar, five-year contract extension with a max value of 17.5 million. The catch is that the final two years are voidable so the deal is really a nine million dollar three-year deal with a max value of 11 million. This is the perfect deal for both the Bears and Santos.

The Bears are the fifth team that Santos has played on in his NFL career. There is no doubt that his 2020 season with them is what earned him this deal. There is no longer an issue with the Bears and their kickers for the foreseeable future. Of course, Santos needs to keep kicking well in order to be worth this deal but it is fair to believe he can.

After a record-setting season, #Bears have agreed to terms with K Cairo Santos on a $16M, 5-year contract with a max value of $17.5M.

Final 2 years of deal are voidable so it’s really a $9M, 3-year deal with max value of $11M.

No more kicker carousel.

— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) March 12, 2021

It is some much-needed good news for this franchise. One of their big problems before 2020 was the kicker. Now, if they can figure out how to move the football more, they might actually be able to take advantage of having a good kicker. You can’t rely solely on field goals but you need to have that as a part of your game.

Related Story: Three Bears trade packages for Russell Wilson

With a guy like Santos in the mix, we can go into 2021 with the kicker being the least of the worries. It is a good deal for the Bears and Santos is now taken care of on an individual level. He can just go out there and worry about kicking that ball through uprights instead of worrying about where he is going to play the following year.

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Three teenage boys face attempted robbery charges after they allegedly confronted a 69-year-old concealed-carry holder who subsequently shot one of them in Beverly.

The boys — ages 15, 16 and 17 — confronted the man about 10:40 p.m. Tuesday in the 10600 block of South Leavitt Street and demanded his belongings, Chicago police said.

The 69-year-old took out his gun and shot one of them in the knee, police said.

The trio drove away but crashed shortly after, police said. Officers arrested them after a foot chase.

The teens, who were not named because they’re charged as juveniles, each face a count of attempted robbery.

The two older teens also face a count each of possession of a stolen vehicle, while the 16-year-old also faces a misdemeanor count of theft between $500 and $10,000.

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