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| Full name | Chicago Sting | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Sting | ||
| Founded | 1975 | ||
| Dissolved | 1988 | ||
| Stadium | Soldier Field Comiskey Park Wrigley Field Chicago Stadium Rosemont Horizon (both indoor) (Capacity: 55,000 (Soldier Field) 45,000 (Comiskey) 37,000 (Wrigley)) |
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| Chairman | Lee Stern | ||
| Coach | Bill Foulkes Malcolm Musgrove Willy Roy |
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| League | NASL & MISL | ||
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The Chicago Sting (1975-1988) was an American professional soccer team based in Chicago, Illinois. The Sting played in the North American Soccer League from 1975 to 1984 and in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1984 to 1988. They were North American Champions in 1981 and 1984.[1]
The Sting were founded in 1975 by Lee Stern of Chicago. A few years after founding the Sting, Stern brought Willy Roy on as head coach. Roy coached the Sting for the remainder of their outdoor existence.
The team was named in reference to the popular 1973 film, The Sting, whose action was set in Chicago of the 1930s.
The club played at various venues. The outdoor team spread their home games at Soldier Field, Wrigley Field, and Comiskey Park. The indoor entry called both Chicago Stadium and the Rosemont Horizon (now the Allstate Arena) home.
The club played its first NASL home game against the Denver Dynamos on May 2, 1975.[2]
Contents |
Outdoor year-by-year
| Year | Record | Regular Season Finish | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 12-10 | 2nd, Central Division | Did Not Qualify |
| 1976 | 15-9 | 1st, Northern Division, Atlantic Conference | Division Championships |
| 1977 | 10-16 | 4th, Northern Division, Atlantic Conference | Did Not Qualify |
| 1978 | 12-18 | 2nd, Central Division, American Conference | First Round |
| 1979 | 16-14 | 2nd, Central Division, American Conference | American Conference Semifinals |
| 1980 | 21-11 | 1st, Central Division, American Conference | First Round |
| 1981 | 23-9 | 1st, Central Division | NASL Champions |
| 1982 | 13-19 | 4th, Eastern Division | Did Not Qualify |
| 1983 | 15-15 | 2nd, Eastern Division | Quarterfinals |
| 1984 | 13-11 | 1st, Eastern Division | NASL Champions |
Indoor year-by-year
| Season | League | Record | Regular Season Finish | Playoffs | Avg. Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80/81 | NASL | 13-5 | 1st, Central Division | Lost Championship | 6,164 |
| 81/82 | NASL | 12-6 | 1st, Central Division | First Round | 13,322 |
| 82/83 | MISL | 28-20 | 3rd, Eastern Division | First Round | 9,201 |
| 83/84 | NASL | 20-12 | 2nd | First Round | 11,974 |
| 84/85 | MISL | 28-20 | 2nd, Eastern Division | First Round | 10,628 |
| 85/86 | MISL | 23-25 | 6th, Eastern Division | Did Not Qualify | 7,345 |
| 86/87 | MISL | 23-29 | 5th, Eastern Division | Did Not Qualify | 5,879 |
| 87/88 | MISL | 24-32 | 5th, Eastern Division | Did Not Qualify | 5,977 |
Honors
NASL Championships
- 1981
- 1984
Division Titles
- 1976 Northern Division, Atlantic Conference
- 1980 Central Division, National Conference
- 80/81 Central Division Indoor
- 81/82 Central Division Indoor
- 1981 Central Division
- 1984 Eastern Division
Coach of the Year
- 1981 Willy Roy
All-Star First Team Selections
- 1975 Gordon Hill
- 1979 Bruce Wilson
- 1980 Phil Parkes
- 1981 Frantz Mathieu, Arno Steffenhagen
- 1982 Arno Steffenhagen
- 1983 Pato Margetic
- 1984 Karl-Heinz Granitza
- 84/85 Karl-Heinz Granitza
All-Star Second Team Selections
- 1978 Bruce Wilson
- 1979 Karl-Heinz Granitza, Arno Steffenhagen
- 1980 Karl-Heinz Granitza
- 1981 Karl-Heinz Granitza
- 1982 Karl-Heinz Granitza, Pato Margetic
- 1983 Ricardo Alonso, Young Jeung Cho, Karl-Heinz Granitza
- 1984 Pato Margetic
All-Star Honorable Mentions
- 1977 Willie Morgan
- 1978 Karl-Heinz Granitza, Jorgen Kristensen
- 1979 Jorgen Kristensen
- 1980 Frantz Mathieu
- 1981 Dave Huson, Pato Margetic
- 82/83 Pato Margetic
- 1983 Dave Huson
- 84/85 Gerry Gray
- 86/87 Batata
Notable players
Dick Advocaat (1978-80)
Mervyn Cawston (1975-78) [1]- Eddie Cliff (1975-76) [2]
- Geoff Davies (1976) [3]
- Gordon Hill (1975/1982)
- Gerry Ingram (1978-79)
Karl-Heinz Granitza (1978-88)- Horst Blankenburg (1978-80)
- Hans Weiner (1982-84)
- Jimmy Kelly (1976-78)
Cho Young-Jeung (1982-83)- Duncan McKenzie (1982)
- Ronnie Moore (1977) [4]
Jim McCalliog (1977)- Derek Spalding (1978-82)
Clive Griffiths (1975-79) [5]
Head coaches
- Bill Foulkes 1975 - 1977
Willy Roy 1977 - 1986- Malcolm Musgrove 1978
- Erich Geyer 1986 - 1988
Outdoor yearly average attendance
- 1975 - 4,330
- 1976 - 5,801
- 1977 - 5,199
- 1978 - 4,188
- 1979 - 8,036
- 1980 - 11,672
- 1981 - 12,889
- 1982 - 9,377
- 1983 - 10,937
- 1984 - 8,376
References
- ^ Schwarz, Orrin (2009-09-30). "Fire's tribute to Stern, Sting a thanks to soccer's pioneers". Daily Herald. http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=325160.
- ^ Conklin, Mike (1975-05-02). "Chicago Sting will make home debut tonight". Chicago Tribune. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/610325642.html?dids=610325642:610325642&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=May+02%2C+1975&author=&pub=Chicago+Tribune&desc=Chicago+Sting+will+make+home+debut+tonight&pqatl=google.
External links
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