Goalie Hector Partida can only watch as his Deportivo Chaparro teammates blow another chance for a goal. Late in the second half of a hot, dusty soccer game at Montrose Harbor, a hard shot bounces off the goal post.
Misses by an inch.
Deportivo Chaparro attacks tirelessly for the rest of the game, but in the end walks off the field defeated, the score 0-1 (or “nil-one”).
“Always they look at the goalie,” says Partida, of Chicago, lamenting good-naturedly the point he allowed earlier in the 90-minute match. “The defense can miss it, but when the ball goes through my hands, it’s the goalie, always the goalie.”
But he shakes it off–there’s always next Sunday afternoon. And the games, after all, are just for fun.
Which isn’t to say that soccer isn’t serious sport in Chicago. This is not just the game of suburban kids playing after school, as a weekend visit to Montrose or any of dozens of sports fields in the city and suburbs will tell you. Amateur adults play on some two dozen leagues across the area, each league divided into divisions of highly skilled “major” and “select” teams down to more casual clubs that welcome newcomers. There’s senior and all-women’s leagues, too. The Illinois State Soccer Association, the main governing body for adult amateur players in Chicago, counts 500 area teams with 15,000 players.
This being the favorite sport of the rest of the world, most of these players come from Chicago’s soccer-mad immigrant communities–first and second generations from Europe, Latin and South America, and Africa. It makes for a weekly World Cup all summer long. Irish expatriates play teams from the Polish community, Mexican players battle South Americans.
The Vikings is a 77-year-old Chicago team in the Metropolitan Soccer League, founded by Scandinavian immigrants and since taken over by Irish and British-born players.
“We invaded the Vikings. A nice sort of reversal, don’t you think?” says club president Jack Cannon, who has been playing soccer since he was a lad in Dublin.
Chicago’s soccer scene is so interesting because of its melting pot makeup, he says. “You get this great clash of styles of play.”
Players from Northern Europe, for instance, play more physically, while those from South America rely on a slower pace and dribbling. “They’re not going to play a ball into space where players have to go chase it down,” Cannon says.
Claudio Evangelista of Oak Forest makes no secret that he plays less for fun, and more to win. On a field in suburban Harvey, he assembles his crew. Evangelista, from Brazil, is a former professional player and the team he helps coach, La Esperanza, is ranked at the top of the major division of the sizeable CLASA league.
Two years ago, before he was brought in, Esperanza was foundering, close to losing its “major” status. Evangelista made changes, booting all but three players from the roster. The team now has a sponsor and a budget; its uniforms are paid for, the cleats on each of the players feet are paid for, and–not unheard of in the majors–the amateur players themselves are paid for.
It’s like this: There’s no pay for playing, and nobody is quitting their day jobs. But if anyone asks for financial “help,” they get it in the form of some money from the team owner every so often.
The game in Harvey has not yet begun, but thunderclouds hang in the sky overhead. No one from the opposing team has showed, but the game has not been officially called, so Esperanza players warm up in their Nike uniforms, lining up shots on goal. The squad practices twice a week and plays weekly all summer long.
Still, soccer in America can never be like it was in Brazil, Evangelista says. “For us, soccer is religion,” he said. “We have God first, then we have soccer. It is our passion.”
At game time, lightning flickers and the skies open up. In nearby Lake County, Ind., they’re calling for tornado warnings. Regulations say a team must give their opponents 15 minutes to show up before the game is called in their favor, so Claudio continues his discourse inside his black, customized pickup truck.
Brazilians consider soccer an art form, he says, and its most passionate players artists. Soccer played at this level is known, simply, as “the Beautiful Game.”
At 6:30, through rain and slashing wind, Evangelista finally leaves his post. He’s followed out of the parking lot by the rest of the team; no one dared budge before he did.
“This team, this is really good discipline,” he said. “Fantastic.”
Tournaments and summer playoffs–some going on now–decide the best of each league, and city-wide meets match the best of one league against another. Every league’s season is structured a little differently–some have two outdoor seasons, one spring-to-summer and the second summer-to-fall. Others have games all summer with a break in July. Most leagues move indoors in the winter.
This year’s championships promise excellent, hard-fought games. If you’d like a taste of soccer, consult the ISSA and seek out a game. Or if you want to find a team, now is a good time to join a club for fall.
Dean Windemuller, a student and soccer player at Wheaton College, approached the coach of the Linces team of the InterAmericana League during a practice and joined on as stopper (defense).
On a recent weekend at Montrose, Windemuller subbed in and out of a fast-paced game against an African team, holding his own alongside much bigger players from South America and Africa.
Everyone on the field seemed as comfortable handling a ricocheting soccer ball as their own hands. A kick sent sailing at one player’s face was deflected with a quick flick of his forehead. A teammate recovered the ball mid-bounce, needing only the raised instep of his shoe to bring its erratic spin under control. Taking off for the opposite goal, he covered all of five sprinting steps before three defensemen appeared out of nowhere and snatched the ball away, sending him sprawling.
Going from college soccer to South American-style football took some getting used to, Windemuller admitted. “Well, for one thing they play pretty rough,” he said. “Every game, it seems like there’s one or two yellow cards” (a strong warning–similar to a technical foul in basketball).
On the other hand, compared to his fellow collegians, “everyone passes really well,” he said.
Hanging out after their 0-1 defeat, Deportivo Chaparro sits on the grass and swaps stories from the game. A player’s bloody nose is admired all around. A teenager makes the rounds with a cooler, offering everyone Cokes.
Coach Vicente Carrillo founded the team 12 years ago–it’s in the first division (just below the majors) of the InterAmericana League, plays every Sunday during the summer, and will be in league playoffs this month. Carrillo and many guys on his team grew up playing the game in the same village of Miclloacan in Mexico.
Along with the game they know as football, they’ve brought along its spirit of community–Deportivo Chaparro turned out at Montrose at 11 a.m. that morning to watch another team from the same region in Mexico play.
Mexican and Polish teams in particular consider the sport a neighborhood event. Family, friends, picnic supplies and grills are packed into the van along with the gear on game days.
“We play to have fun. We spend the week working, this our Sunday and we want to play. We don’t want to go spend the day in the bar or something,” Carrillo said.
National Soccer League secretary George Gorecki, whose parents hail from Poland, says the main reason he plays the game is to connect with his Polish community.
“This is a big part of our weekend,” he said. “Come to Marquette Park and you’ll see the whole neighborhood out watching the game.”
Deportivo Chaparro also practices at least once a week, running drills and playing scrimmages. Hanging out after the game, Carrillo and goalie Partida talk about their chances in the upcoming championships, about the difficulty of arranging Park District fields to play on, and about Mexicans’ love of the game.
“In Mexico we’d play with almost any ball,” Partida said. “Maybe it would be a soccer ball, or maybe it would be an American football. Where ever it would roll, we’d follow it.”
Partida didn’t play last year because he worked on Sunday. At 36, he wants to play for two more years until his son gets more into the game.
John Crane of Naperville, a halfback for the Vikings senior squad, is 39, married with kids. He still practices with the reserve squad once a week and plays a game every Sunday in the summer. He recalls fondly joining the club in 1986 right after playing college soccer in Houston.
From the strong accents, he deduced his new Vikings teammates probably weren’t Chicago born-and-raised, but left it at that for nine months of playing and practicing with the team, and hanging out in Irish pubs.
“I thought they were Poles,” he said, finally admitting his ignorance one evening over a pint. “Hey, I came from Texas, I didn’t have any idea. I didn’t know what an Irish bar was.”
His teammates thought that was astounding and bought him several rounds for his infraction. They’ve since become like family, Crane said. Suffice that since, the player known as “Tex” to his teammates has become more Irish.
“You know,” he said, “I named my first son Ryan.”
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Local leagues
Chicago’s adult soccer scene is one of the oldest and largest in the country. There are many teams and leagues, most organized through the Illinois State Soccer Association (ISSA).
ILLINOIS STATE SOCCER ASSOCIATION
4036 N. Pulaski Rd.; 773-283-2800
www.illinoissoccer.org
The ISSA is Chicago’s main adult amateur soccer organizer and is comprised of most of the big leagues in the area. Affiliated with the United States Adult Soccer Association. Provides officiating, playing field arrangements, player insurance, league government.
Want to play? This is the best first stop. Men players can get league references that fit their skill level and place of residence. Women can get involved in an e-mail network to find a team.
Want to watch? Go to the ISSA Web site to check out the current tournament schedule, or call the office.
NATIONAL SOCCER LEAGUE–CHICAGO
5624 W. Diversey Ave.; 773-237-1270
www.eteamz.com/nsl-chicago
One of the oldest amateur soccer leagues in the country. It started in 1919 and is comprised of about 60 clubs with ties to Chicago’s South American, Latin American and European communities. “We’re almost a United Nations,” said NSL secretary George Gorecki, who adds that all skill levels and backgrounds are welcome to join.
The league plays at Montrose Harbor, at the Schiller Woods forest preserve at Lawrence Avenue and River Road, and in Naperville and Gurnee. End-of-season tournaments are in October.
INTERAMERICANA SOCCER
5875 N. Lincoln Ave.; 773- 334-7584
Primarily Latin American and South American teams, although not part of the ISSA.
CHICAGO LATIN AMERICAN SOCCER ASSOCIATION
4115 W. 26th St.; 773-522-7700
Known as CLASA (pronounced Clah-sa), this primarily Mexican league is one of the area’s biggest, with 4,500 players. It was founded in 1967 and almost doubled in size after the 1994 World Cup, which made soccer more popular in the United States, secretary Laura Espinosa said. “Everywhere you go you see soccer now.”
The league plays mostly at Douglas Park (1401 S. Sacramento Drive) and Washington Park (600 E. 59th St., between King Drive and Cottage Grove Avenue). It also has games at Montrose Harbor, and some “majors” play their home competitions on fields in Blue Island and Harvey. End-of-season tournaments are in September.
ILLINOIS WOMEN’S SOCCER LEAGUE
P.O. Box 68849, Schaumburg; 847-985-4975 or call the ISSA
www.iwsl.com
This Chicago-area women’s league is almost 30 years old and is one of the biggest all-female leagues in the country, with more than 900 youth and 30 adult teams. Its “select” all-star team will play in the national Donnelly Cup in January 2004. But all skill levels and newcomers are welcome to join.
The league plays all over the area, from Tinley Park to Lake Forest.
METROPOLITAN LEAGUE
9866 Farragut Ave., Rosemont; 847-678-7349
Not for wimps. This league is a small, select group of players who take their soccer seriously indeed. It sports teams with Irish, Italian, German, Polish, Serbian and Croatian roots and plays in the north and northwest suburbs. End-of-season tournaments are going on now. Metropolitan is picky about what fields it plays; it’s best is Schwaben Center in Buffalo Grove, which even features bleachers for spectators.
NORTH LAKE COUNTY SOCCER ASSOCIATION
351 Oakwood Ave., Waukegan; 847-487-1453
www.eteamz.com/nlcsa
The NLCSA is made up of more than 60 teams, including a dozen women’s teams. They play in Lake County, mainly in Waukegan. Playoffs begin Aug. 31.
— Doug George
