Starting in 2025, the Chicago Red Stars will tweak their brand.
The team will be known as the Chicago Stars Football Club and will have a new logo.
They are getting the “Red” out.
“As the stewards of this club, Laura Ricketts, the ownership group and the leadership team believe it is time to evolve our identity as a symbol of this new chapter,” team president Karen Leetzow said in a news release.
“It is our intent going forward to honor the legacy made by past players, fans and associates, while carving a new path for the club and representing Chicago more authentically on and off the pitch.”
Officials say this is the first major brand transformation for the Stars in their nearly 20-year history.
The name, Chicago Red Stars, was chosen in 2009 as a tribute to the four stars found on the Chicago city flag. The club’s crest, which also paid tribute to the city flag with its colors and stripes, was modified once in 2017, but kept the familiar elements of the Chicago flag intact.
The team said the new logo will continue to honor Chicago with iconic elements such as the red star at the heart of the crest. Similar to the stars on the Chicago flag that represent meaningful moments in Chicago history, the star at the center of the crest represents the club’s players: past, present and future.
The team has made SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview its home since 2016.
St. Rita grad Joe Polselli had a big game receiving and punting for St. Xavier on Oct. 26 in a loss to Olivet Nazarene. St. Xavier photo
St. Xavier football falls again
Since scoring 29 points in the first half against St. Francis (Joliet) on Oct. 19, the St. Xavier football team has gone through a lull and scored just six in the following six quarters and likely ended its bid for the NAIA playoffs in the process.
The Cougars dropped a 21-6 decision to Olivet Nazarene in a Mid-States Football Association Midwest League game Oct. 26 in Bourbonnais.
Fifth-year receiver/punter Joe Polselli, a St. Rita grad from Evergreen Park, had three catches for 71 yards and the lone touchdown. He also punted seven times for 220 yards.
But that was one bright spot on a tough day for the Cougars (4-4, 0-2).
“This loss is on the head coach,” SXU coach Mike Feminis said. “I wasn’t good enough. Our defense played their butts off, but our special teams let us down and we were out of sync offensively all day.”
It doesn’t get any easier for the Cougars as they host 18th-ranked Marian at noon Nov. 2 at Deaton field.
Marian (5-2, 1-1) was beaten 31-28 by St. Francis (Indiana) on Oct. 26 to go on the bubble for a postseason bid.
Berry, Berry good
In Marist’s 25-17, 25-12 volleyball win over Marian Catholic on Oct. 22, there was an uproar on the bench in the second set when Maddie Berry set up her sister, Mollie, for a kill.
That night also featured Maddie Berry’s 2,000th career assist and Bella Bullington’s 1,000th career kill.
Sister vs. sister
Mother McAuley sophomore setter Peyton Heatherly faced a familiar foe when the Mighty Macs beat Lyons 25-20, 25-18 on Oct. 23.
Her sister Kate is a junior libero for the Lions.
The Heatherlys have an older sister, Jordan, who graduated from Montini in 2023.
Fire II eliminated
Despite goals by Luka Prpa and Dawid Poreba, the Chicago Fire II had their Major League Soccer Next season come to an end with a 3-2 loss to Columbus on Oct. 27 in the Eastern Conference semifinals at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview.