Sports in Chicago include many professional sports teams.Chicago is one ofeleven U.S. cities to have teams from thefive major American professional team sports (baseball, football, basketball, hockey, and soccer). Chicago has been named as the "Best Sports City" bySporting News three times: 1993, 2006, and 2010.

Chicago was a candidate city for the2016 Summer Olympics but lost toRio de Janeiro.^[1] Chicago also hosted the1959Pan American Games, as well as the2006Gay Games. Chicago hosted the inaugural1968Special Olympics Summer World Games as well as its second games in 1970. Chicago also was the host of the 2017Warrior Games.

The following is a list of active, professionalmajor-league Chicagosports teams, ranked by attendance:

TheChicago Bears of theNational Football League (NFL) play atSoldier Field. The Bears' history includes many NFL personalities, including ownerGeorge Halas, playersDick Butkus,Gale Sayers,Walter Payton, and coachMike Ditka. The Bears are one of the original teams of the NFL, founded by Halas in 1919 inDecatur, Illinois. They currently have the most players inducted into thePro Football Hall of Fame with26.^[2] In1985, the Bears wonSuper Bowl XX 46–10 over theNew England Patriots.^[3] In the2006 season, the Bears reachedSuper Bowl XLI, but lost 29–17 to theIndianapolis Colts.^[4] They were led by coachLovie Smith.

The Bears'rivalry with theGreen Bay Packers dates back the 1920s, and is one of the most intense in American professional sports.^[5] The Bears have other regional anddivisional rivalries with theMinnesota Vikings and theDetroit Lions.^[6]

The Bears play their home games at Soldier Field, named after "The men and women of the armed forces". It is located next to the shores of Lake Michigan, onDuSable Lake Shore Drive. Soldier Field was an aging stadium and was in dire need of renovation by the end of the 20th century. In 2003, the stadium re-opened after an extensive renovation, which increased the number of luxury boxes and dramatically improved the game day experience for Bears fans. However, because of this renovation, the stadium lost its National Historic Landmark designation on February 17, 2006.

Chicago is one of three metro areas in the United States that has twoMajor League Baseball (MLB) teams, the others beingLos Angeles andNew York City. Of these, only Chicago and New York City have both teams in the city limits. Chicago is the only city that has had more than one MLB team every year since the founding of the American League in 1901 (New York City hosted one team between 1958 and 1962, and Los Angeles has only done so since 1961). TheChicago Cubs are members of theNational League (NL), while theChicago White Sox are members of theAmerican League (AL).

The Cubs play inWrigley Field in the North side neighborhood ofWrigleyville.^[7] The Cubs are the oldest Major League Baseball team to have never changed their city, one of nine out of the sixteen teams to predate expansion that have not changed cities. They have played in Chicago since 1871, and continuously so since 1874 due to theGreat Chicago Fire. The White Sox play inRate Field in theSouth Side neighborhood ofArmour Square. They have played in Chicago since the formation of the American League in 1901.

The Cubs'rivalry with theSt. Louis Cardinals is one of the most bitter in North American professional sports. The Cubs are the oldest team to play continuously in the same city since the formation of the National League in 1876.^[8] They have played more games, have more wins and scored more runs than any other team in Major League baseball since 1876.^[9] They have won threeWorld Series titles (1907,1908,2016) and are fourth among National League teams with17 NL pennants. In2016, the Cubs broke the two longest droughts in professional sports: 1) they won their sport's title for the first time since1908, a drought of 108 years, and 2) participated in a World Series for the first time since1945, a drought of 71 years.

The White Sox have played on the South Side continuously since 1901, with all three of their home fields throughout the years being within mere blocks of one another. They have won three World Series titles (1906,1917,2005) andsix American League pennants, including the first in 1901. The Sox are fifth in the American League in all-time wins, and sixth in pennants.

TheChicago Bulls of theNational Basketball Association (NBA) is a professionalbasketball team.Michael Jordan andScottie Pippen led the Bulls to six NBA championships in two "threepeats" from 1991 to 1993 and again from 1996 to 1998.^[10][11] The new generation of Bulls, known as "The Baby Bulls", emerged in 2005.^[12] In 2007, they swept the defending champs, the Miami Heat. In 2011, led by league MVPDerrick Rose, the Bulls made it to the Eastern Finals, losing to the Miami Heat.

Chicago is home to theChicago Sky of theWomen's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Chicago Sky won the2021 WNBA Finals beating the Phoenix Mercury 3-1.

TheChicago Blackhawks of theNational Hockey League (NHL) is the city's professionalice hockey team, and are anOriginal Six team. The Blackhawks won theStanley Cup in1934,1938,1961,2010,2013,^[13] and again in2015.^[14] The Blackhawks receive national attention for the intense rivalries with theDetroit Red Wings, also an Original Six team.^[15] Other rivalries include the Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues (formerNorris Division rivals), and the Nashville Predators.Some well-known players include:Stan Mikita,Tony Esposito,Bobby Hull,Keith Magnuson,Glenn Hall,Denis Savard,Steve Larmer,Jeremy Roenick,Chris Chelios,Ed Belfour,Patrick Kane,Patrick Sharp,Marián Hossa,Corey Crawford,Jonathan Toews, andDuncan Keith.

Soccer in Chicago can be traced back toChicago Sparta. Founded in 1917 by immigrant Czechs, Sparta competed in several leagues during its existence.^[16] The club's achievements include: winning the National Soccer League of Chicago; winning 9 titles in Chicago's International League, of which the team was a member 1926–1936; and winning the National Challenge Cup twice.^[17][18]In the 1950s, the Chicago Falcons operated. They won the National Challenge Cup in 1953.^[19]

Chicago was once the home of theChicago Sting who competed in the major professionalNorth American Soccer League (NASL) from 1975 to 1984. They spread their home games atSoldier Field,Wrigley Field, andComiskey Park. The Sting won theSoccer Bowl twice:1981 and1984. They were the only club other than theNew York Cosmos to win multiple titles in the NASL^[20] One of the club's notable players was German forwardArno Steffenhagen.

Chicago Fire FC, a member ofMajor League Soccer (MLS), have won oneMLS Cup and fourU.S. Open Cups since they entered the league in 1998. The Fire won their sole MLS Cup in1998, their inaugural season, led by head coachBob Bradley, who later went on to coach theU.S. national soccer team.^[21] The Fire played from 2006 to 2019 atSeatGeek Stadium (originally Toyota Park), asoccer-specific stadium located in the Chicago suburb ofBridgeview near Midway Airport. The club currently plays atSoldier Field after finalizing an agreement with the Chicago Park District in September 2019.^[22] Some notable former players includeCuauhtémoc Blanco from Mexico,Brian McBride from the U.S.,Peter Nowak from Poland, andBastian Schweinsteiger from Germany – a demonstration of the team's international flavor. The club is named after theGreat Chicago Fire of 1871.

Chicago is also home to theChicago Stars FC (formerly Chicago Red Stars), currently playing in theNational Women's Soccer League. The Stars began their second stint at the venue now known as SeatGeek Stadium in 2016, having played there previously as a member of the now-defunctWomen's Professional Soccer.

The following is a list of active minor league, semi-pro, and amateur Chicagosports teams, ranked by year of establishment:

The Chicago metropolitan area is also home to theChicago Wolves of theAmerican Hockey League. The Chicago Wolves have been successful, making numerous playoff appearances and winning the Turner and Calder cups many times.^{[citation needed]} Playing in suburban Geneva are theChicago Steel of theUnited States Hockey League, a Tier One Junior Hockey league, the only tier one junior league in the United States.^{[citation needed]}

The Chicago metropolitan area was also home to theChicago Rush of theArena Football League, who played atAllstate Arena in Rosemont. The Rush won its first championship in 2006,ArenaBowl XX.^[23] Chicago was also home to theChicago Bruisers from 1987 to 1989, an original team in the AFL's inaugural season in 1987. The Bruisers hostedArenaBowl II.^[24][25]

TheChicago Rush had been a member of theArena Football League since 2001, and wonArenaBowl XX, playing in suburbanRosemont, although they now played in Rockford, as of 2013. The team has been defunct since 2013.

The Arena Football League front office was based in Chicago.

TheChicago Hounds ofMajor League Rugby began play in2023 atSeatGeek Stadium inBridgeview, Illinois.^[26][27]

TheChicago Griffins andChicago Lions both play in theMidwest Rugby Premiership.

Chicago Stockyardersrugby league team played in 2010'sAMNRL'sWar at the Shore in a 7s match against theNorthern Raiders.^[28]

In internationalrugby union,Soldier Field was the site of the first-ever victory byIreland overNew Zealand, with the Irish defeating the All Blacks 40–29 on November 5, 2016.^[29]

Chicago is home to theChicago Blitz of theX League.

The Chicago area has also played host to theWWE'sWrestleMania multiple times, most recently forWrestleMania 22.^[30] Five-time world championCM Punk is a Chicago native who still lives in the city.Chicago has also hosted majorprofessional wrestling matches, includingWrestleMania 22, and several otherpay-per-view events, such asMoney in the Bank in 2011,Extreme Rules in 2012, andWWE Payback in 2013.^[31][32][33] The northwest suburb ofHoffman Estates hostedAll In in 2018, the first U.S. wrestling event not sponsored by WWE or the now-defunctWCW in 25 years to have sold more than 10,000 tickets. This event was the springboard for the creation ofAll Elite Wrestling (AEW) several months later. AEW would run two historically significant shows in the Chicago area in 2021. The first,The First Dance, was held at the United Center on August 20. During this show, CM Punk debuted for AEW, marking his first appearance as an active wrestler since his acrimonious departure from WWE in 2014.^[34] Then, during Labor Day weekend on September 5, theAll Out pay-per-view saw AEW visit the same Hoffman Estates venue that had hosted All In. During this event, Punk wrestled his first match since his WWE departure, defeatingDarby Allin.^[35] At the time, All Out was the most-purchased AEW PPV, and according to veteran wrestling journalistDave Meltzer was the most-bought non-WWE professional wrestling PPV in history.^[36]

Starting just offNavy Pier is theChicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac, a 333-mile (289 nmi; 536 km) offshoreyacht race held each July. It is the oldest annual freshwater distance race in the world. 2015 marks the 107th running of the "Mac".^[37]

Chicago is home to two all-female roller derby leagues;Chicago Outfit Roller Derby andWindy City Rollers of theWomen's Flat Track Derby Association.^[38] As of November 2013, Windy City is ranked 8th worldwide out of over 175 WFTDA members,^[39] hosted theWFTDA Championship in 2010,^[40] and play their home games atUIC Pavilion.^[41]The Chicago area is also home to theChicago Red Hots, an amateur roller derby club affiliated withUSA Roller Sports under theUS Olympic Committee,^[42] who play at the Cicero Stadium. The Red Hots participated in the 2013 National Championship where they placed 4th in the nation.^[43]

The city is also home to theChicago Patriots Gaelic Football Club.

SevenNCAADivision I athletic programs reside in theChicago metropolitan area. TheDePaul Blue Demons,Loyola Ramblers,Chicago State Cougars, andUIC Flames,none of which sponsor football, are all within the city limits. All play their main revenue sport of men's basketball in the city; only DePaul does not play on its campus, instead usingWintrust Arena at theMcCormick Place convention center on the Near South Side.

TheNorthwestern Wildcats,Northern Illinois Huskies, andValparaiso Beacons are all programs that play in the surrounding area. Northern Illinois is aDivision I Bowl Subdivision school along with Northwestern, which is the onlyPower Four school in the Chicago area. Although theIllinois Fighting Illini are located two hours south in Champaign, they have the largest fan following in Chicago. The football program of Notre Dame, which is located in South Bend, Indiana, which is an hour and a half to the east, also has a huge following in the Chicago Area, especially in its southwest suburbs.

TheBig Ten Conference is headquartered in Rosemont after relocating from another suburb,Park Ridge, in 2013.^[44]

It has been suggested thatportions ofChicago State Cougars football besplit out from it andmerged into this article. (Discuss)(January 2026)

Chicago's college football history includes hosting the home field of at least 4 national champions (1905 Chicago Maroons,1913 Chicago Maroons,1929 Notre Dame Fighting Irish and2011 Saint Xavier Cougars). Although all of the other current Division I athletic programs in Chicago have a history of Division I football, none play varsity football now. Former football powerhouseChicago Maroons football has a storied major football history, but it has not played Division I football since 1939. Several regional football Division I football programs (includingNorthwestern,Illinois,Notre Dame andNorthern Illinois) have on occasion played football games in Chicago. Several Chicago colleges currently have football programs that are not Division I.

At the inception ofChicago State Cougars football in 2026, some collegiate athletic programs participated in NCAA Division I athletic competition for many other sports in the city of Chicago:DePaul Blue Demons in theBig East Conference (since 2005),^[45]Loyola Ramblers in theAtlantic 10 Conference (since 2022),^[46] andUIC Flames in theMissouri Valley Conference (since 2022).^[47] All three of these other current Division I athletic programs in Chicago have a history of collegiate football:University of Illinois Chicago precursor component'sChicago Circle Chikas football last competed in the1973 NCAA Division III football season^[48][49][50]DePaul Blue Demons football's last team was the1938 team.^[51] The1930 Loyola Ramblers football team was the school's final season as a major Independent.^[52] Also,Illinois Tech precursor, Lewis Institute, intermittently fielded a football team at least into the 1920s.^[53][54][55]

Also at the time of inception of the program there were several college football programs in Chicago that were not Division I:Roosevelt Lakers (DII),North Park Vikings football (DIII),Chicago Maroons football (DIII),Saint Xavier University (NAIA). Chicago Maroons won two national championships (1905 and1913) as a member of theBig Ten Conference, but now competes in theMidwest Conference (since 2017) ofNCAA Division III.^[56]Roosevelt University currently plays football in theGreat Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference of theNCAA Division II.^[57] Home stadium,Morris Field, however is located inArlington Heights, Illinois.^[58] North Park has competed in football since 1934,^[59] and they moved to theCollege Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin ofNCAA Division III in 1962.^[60]2011 Saint Xavier Cougars won the2011 NAIA football national championship.^[61]

In Chicago, bothWrigley Field andSoldier Field have hosted college football games hosted by non-Chicago football programs on occasion. Several regional college, such asNorthwestern based inEvanston andIllinois based inChampaign, Illinois, both of the Big Ten Conference (since 1896),^[62][63] andNotre Dame based inSouth Bend, Indiana have hosted individual games at these fields. Some of these games have been very significant. The November 22, 1924 in theNorthwestern–Notre Dame football rivalry game was the first college football game ever played atSoldier Field.^[64] Northwestern handed the eventual National Champion1925 Michigan Wolverines football team its only loss and posted the only points scored against them all season at Soldier Field.^[65] Soldier Field had its formal dedication on November 27, 1926 when it hosted over 110,000 people for theArmy–Navy Game.^[66][64] The 1927Notre Dame–USC football rivalry game set a record for the highest college football game attendance at 123,000 at Soldier Field.^[67] The National Champion1929 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team played all their "home games" there following the 1928 demolition ofCartier Field to make way for the 1930 opening ofNotre Dame Stadium.^{[citation needed]} As of 2025^[update] Northwestern is 1–6 at Wrigley Field with games starting in 2010.^[68][69][70] As of 2021^[update] Notre Dame is 11–0–2 at Soldier Field.^[71][72] TheIllinois–Northwestern football rivalry had two games at Wrigley Field 2010 and 2024,^[73][74] and one atSoldier Field in 2015.^[75] Since its 1994 debut at Soldier Field, Illinois has compiled an 0–4 record there as of 2018^[update].^[76][77][78] TheNorthern Illinois Huskies football team has also hosted a series of games at Soldier field since the 2003 renovation of the stadium. NIU has hosted the2007 Iowa Hawkeyes,^[79]2011 Wisconsin Badgers,^[80] and2012 Hawkeyes.^[81] They had also scheduled a game against the2016 Nebraska Cornhuskers at Soldier Field that did not take place.^[82][83]

After a months' long process that saw the elimination of several American and international cities, Chicago was selected on April 14, 2007, to represent the United States internationally in thebidding for the2016 Summer Olympics.^[84] TheInternational Olympic Committee eventually shortlisted four of the seven applicant cities, where Chicago remained, beforeRio de Janeiro was elected as the host in 2009.^[85] Following Chicago's loss in the race for the 2016 Olympics, theUSOC bid for the2024 Olympics withLos Angeles which result in a deal where Los Angeles secured the right to host the2028 Summer Olympics. Chicago had previously hosted the1959 Pan American Games. Chicago was selected to host the1904 Summer Olympics, but they were transferred toSt. Louis to coincide with theLouisiana Purchase Exposition.^[86]

Chicagoland Speedway (left) and theChicago Street Course (right).

The area is home to theChicagoland Speedway, which is located inJoliet and theChicago Street Course in the streets of Chicago.^[87][88]

Chicagoland Speedway hosts theNASCAR Cup Series'Camping World 400, theNASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts Series'Camping World 300, and theDawn 150 for theARCA Menards Series. The track also held theCamping World 225 for theNASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and thePeak Antifreeze Indy 300 for theNTT IndyCar Series.^[89] Although a NASCAR Cup Series race was scheduled in 2020, the race was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.^[90] In May 2020, plans were made to convert 82 acres (33 ha) of the facility's parking lots into warehouse storage;^[91] however, the plan faced opposition from the Joliet City Council Economic Development Committee^[92] and was rejected by the Joliet Plan Commission in August.^[93] In September, NASCAR announced that all three national series would not return to Chicagoland Speedway for the 2021 season, leaving the track with an uncertain future.^[94] Paddock resigned as president a month later.^[95] The track was left widely dormant in the following years after NASCAR's departure. After many rumors and speculation, on July 30, 2025,The Athletic reported that the Cup Series was expected to return to the facility in 2026 following the removal of a race at theChicago Street Course.^[96] On August 20, 2025, NASCAR announced the 2026 season schedules, which featured the Cup and O'Reilly Auto Parts Series running at the track for the first time since 2019, returning to the July 4th weekend for 2026.^[97]

The Chicago Street Course hosted theGrant Park 165 andThe Loop 110.^[98] The circuit is a 2.140 mi (3.444 km) loop throughGrant Park, starting and ending on Columbus Drive in front ofBuckingham Fountain and including portions ofColumbus Drive, Balbo Drive,Lake Shore Drive,Roosevelt Road,Michigan Avenue, Congress Plaza Drive, and Jackson Drive.^[99] After the 2025 race weekend, MayorBrandon Johnson's administration stated they are willing to extend the contract for a further two years, but only after exploring a date change.^[100] Event officials announced onX that the race would be removed from the 2026 schedule and would later be announced thatChicagoland Speedway would return to the schedule for 2026.^[101][97]

TheRoute 66 Raceway is also located in Joliet. The track hostsdrag racing events and is funded by nine local entrepreneurs headed by IndyCar ownerDale Coyne.^[102] It currently hosts theNHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Route 66 NHRA Nationals and previously held theAMA Supercross Championship in 2000 on a Daytona-style course on the dragstrip.^[103]

Due to geographical proximity and a long history, Chicago and Detroit have developed a rivalry throughout the big 4 sports and even at the collegiate level.

Chicago has also developed a rivalry with Milwaukee due to their metropolitan areas bordering each other. While the Packers currently play inGreen Bay, they spent several decades playing regular season games in Milwaukee and have a large fanbase there.

Chicago and Minnesota have also developed a rivalry, though it is much newer compared to Detroit and Milwaukee.

Chicago and St. Louis have a rivalry that is primarily in baseball, though this has spread to other sports such as hockey and soccer.

Chicago and New York City have a rivalry.

• 16-inch softball
• Arlington Park
• Chicagoland Speedway
• Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame
• Chicago bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics
• Chicago Marathon
• Hawthorne Race Course
• Illinois High School Association (IHSA)
• Multiple major sports championship seasons

• Sports in Chicago

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