The Chicago Falcons is the title of two sports franchises: one being an active American Football Association independent professional minor league indoor & outdoor football team, and the other being a defunct American soccer team which won the 1953 National Challenge Cup, both from Chicago, Illinois [1].
| Established | April 1990 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Based in | Chicago, Illinois | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Home field | Columbus Park | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Head coach | Tom Robinson | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| General manager | Asif Ali | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owner(s) | Tom Robinson | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| League | GMFL (1990 - 2015), Independent (2016 - present) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Colors | Black, Red, Silver, and White | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Titles | 1996, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2016 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Division titles | 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2016 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/?u=CHICAGOFALCON&s=football | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current uniform | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Minor League Football team
History
The Falcons were founded in April 1990 by American Football Association professional minor league football hall of fame Head Coach Tom Robinson & Amin Covington who have been coaching together for over 30 years at Orr High School [2]. On September 30, 2013, the Chicago Falcons Inc. became established as a non profit organization. As of 2018, the Falcons remain one of the longest tenured active franchises across all professional minor league football leagues.
The Falcons were originally incorporated as part of the GMFL which disbanded in 2015, and then established themselves as an independent franchise by joining the Midwest Fall Football League in 2016, which still competes to this day [3]. After a few years of losing seasons, the Falcons made it to the Championship game in their fifth season in 1994, in which they lost. The Falcons then proceeded to win their first title in 1996, back-to-back titles in 1998, 1999, 2002, again in 2003 and 2008 as part of the GMFL, and most recently in 2016 as members of the MFFL.
On May 22, 2018, Coach Robinson promoted Asif Ali to Head of Football Operations making him the first active player / GM in minor league football and franchise history [4].
Rivalries
The Falcons compete in both indoor and outdoor football leagues, and share numerous rivalries with in-state and out of state minor league & semi-pro franchises such as the West Michigan Ironmen, Racine Raiders, & Midway Marauders [5].
Honors
- 1996 GMFL Champions
- 1998 GMFL Champions
- 1999 GMFL Champions
- 2002 GMFL Champions
- 2003 GMFL Champions
- 2008 GMFL Runner-Ups
- 2009 GMFL Champions
- 2010 GMFL Windy City Division Champions (7-4)
- 2011 GMFL Skyway Division Champions (9-2)
- 2012 GMFL Western Division Runner Ups (8-3)
- 2013 GMFL Northern Division Runner Ups (9-2)
- 2016 Midwest Fall Football League (MFFL) Champions
Notable Players
AFA Minor League Football Hall of Fame Inductees
- Tom Robinson - Class of 2003 [6] [7]
- Leon Burch - Class of 2012 [8] [9]
- Larry Johnson[disambiguation needed] - Class of 2016 [10][11]
- Earnest Williams[disambiguation needed] - Class of 2017 [12][13]
- Joel Pruneda - Class of 2018 [14] [15]
Active Players
- Asif Ali
- Christopher Blackmon
- Ryan Hardman
- Phil Noffz
- Anthony Spivey
- Alex Tenard
Soccer team
The Falcons won promotion to the NSL Major Division from the NSL First Division in 1952, the year they won the first of their two Peel Cup titles. In their first season in the Major Division, they finished second to the Ukrainian Lions. They also won their second consecutive Peel Cup in 1953[16]
Honors
- National Challenge Cup
- Winners (1): 1953
- Peel Cup
- Winners (2): 1952, 1953
References
- ^ "USA – List of US Open Cup Finals". RSSSF. Retrieved March 17, 2011.
- ^ https://www.americanfootballassn.com/hall-of-fame.html
- ^ http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/?u=CHICAGOFALCON&s=football
- ^ http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/default.asp?u=CHICAGOFALCON&s=football&p=newsstory&newsID=56544
- ^ http://journaltimes.com/sports/racine-raiders-vs-chicago-falcons/collection_873ac66e-a531-11e0-9e0d-001cc4c03286.html
- ^ [1]
- ^ http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/default.asp?u=CHICAGOFALCON&s=football&p=awards
- ^ [2]
- ^ http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/default.asp?u=CHICAGOFALCON&s=football&p=awards
- ^ [3]
- ^ http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/default.asp?u=CHICAGOFALCON&s=football&p=awards
- ^ [4]
- ^ http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/default.asp?u=CHICAGOFALCON&s=football&p=awards
- ^ [5]
- ^ http://www.hometeamsonline.com/teams/default.asp?u=CHICAGOFALCON&s=football&p=awards
- ^ The Year in American Soccer – 1953