- Chicago Sparta
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The Sparta Athletic and Benevolent Association Football Club, better known as Chicago Sparta, is one of the longest continually established soccer clubs in the United States. Founded in 1917, it was one of the dominant teams from Chicago, Illinois from the mid-1920s to the late 1940s.
Contents
History
In 1915, immigrant Czechs living in Chicago, Illinois formed a social sports organization which they named the Sparta Athletic and Benevolent Association. In 1917, several players from Chicago Slavia joined Sparta A and BA to form the core of Sparta’s soccer club. This team, known at times as Sparta A and BA or Sparta ABA, is best known simply as Chicago Sparta. In 1922, Sparta joined the Chicago Major League. However, up to 1923, Sparta had remained an undistinguished amateur recreational team. That year, it signed several Czechs who had recently immigrated to the United States. These proved to be exceptional players and they quickly brought Sparta to the top of the city’s soccer hierarchy. At the time, Chicago was dominated by ethnic British leagues, but during the early 1920, several new leagues were formed to meet the needs of other expatriate teams. There are no records of which of the these leagues Sparta played in, but in 1926, it joined the St. Louis Soccer League which was attempting to expand throughout the Midwest United States. Sparta played only four games, a 2-1-1 record, before withdrawing on November 16, 1926. It then joined Chicago's International League, winning nine titles before moving to the new National Soccer League of Chicago in 1937. It won that season's title, then no more. However, by that time, it was gaining attention at the national level, winning the 1938 National Challenge Cup and earning a co-championship in the 1940 National Challenge Cup. In 1938, Sparta rejoined the St. Louis Soccer League. This time, it won the league title, their last in team history. In 1969, Sparta tied for the Peel Cup title with Chicago Kickers, never to win a national or state competition after that year.
Year-by-year
Year League Reg. Season Peel Cup National Challenge Cup 1924/25 CML ? ? Fourth round 1925/26 CML ? ? First round 1926-27 SLSL 4th ? Semifinal 1927/28 ISL 1st Champion Quarterfinal 1928/29 ISL ? Champion Semifinal 1929/30 ISL 1st Champion Second round 1930/31 ISL 1st Champion Second round 1931/32 ISL 1st Champion Quarterfinals 1932/33 ISL 1st Champion Semifinal 1933/34 ISL 1st ? Quarterfinals 1934/35 ISL 1st ? Second round 1935/36 ISL 1st ? Quarterfinals 1936/37 ISL ? Champion Semifinals 1937/38 NSL 1st ? Champion 1938-39 SLSL 1st Champion Quarterfinals 1939/40 ? ? ? Champion 1940/41 ? ? ? ? 1941/42 ? ? ? ? 1942/43 ? ? ? ? 1943/44 ? ? ? ? 1944/45 ? ? ? ? 1945/46 ? ? Champion ? 1946/47 ? ? Champion Final 1947/48 ? ? Champion ? Honors
National Challenge Cup
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- Winner (2): 1938, 1940
- Runner Up (1): 1947
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- Winner (12): 1928, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1937, 1939, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1969
League Championship
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- Winner (9): 1928, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1939
Notable players
- Julius Hjulian 1930s
- Millard Lang 1930s and 1940s
- Joe Silovski 1940s and 1950s
- Charlie Fajkus 1970s
- Paul DiBernardo 1970s and 1980s
- Kevin Sullivan 1970s and 1980s
- Milan Gajda 1980s
- Tom Hendzel 1980s
- Joe Kalina 1980s
- Philip Lencioni 1980s
- Manny Tovar 1980s
- Karel J. Capek 1980s
External links
Categories:- Association football clubs established in 1917
- Defunct soccer clubs in the United States
- Soccer clubs in Chicago, Illinois
- Illinois soccer clubs
- St. Louis Soccer League teams
- National Soccer League of Chicago teams
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