Chicago Hounds (rugby union)
Professional rugby union team from Chicago, Illinois, US
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Chicago Hounds are an American professional rugby union team based in the Chicago metropolitan area that competes in Major League Rugby (MLR). The team was founded in 2022 and is co-owned by a small group of investors including majority owner Peter Bernick and part-owners (and longtime Chicago rugby players) Matt Satchwell and Phil Groves.[5][6][7] Their home stadium is SeatGeek Stadium. Games are broadcast on Fox Chicago Plus.[8]
| ||
| Full name | Chicago Hounds | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2022 | |
| Location | Bridgeview, Illinois | |
| Ground | SeatGeek Stadium[1][2] (Capacity: 20,000) | |
| CEO | James English[3] | |
| Coach | Chris Latham[4] | |
| Captain | Lucas Rumball | |
| Most caps | Maclean Jones (49) | |
| Top scorer | Luke Carty (127) | |
| Most tries | Dylan Fawsitt (23) | |
| League | Major League Rugby | |
| 2025 | Eastern Conference: 2nd Playoffs: Conference Runner-up | |
| ||
| Official website | ||
| www | ||
History
On November 17, 2022, Major League Rugby announced the Chicago Hounds as the newest expansion franchise to begin play in 2023, following the discontinuation of the MLR franchises in Austin and Los Angeles.[9] The Hounds compete in the Eastern Conference.[10] Their first game was against Old Glory DC on February 18, 2023.[11] The Hounds finished their inaugural season ranked 5th among the 6 teams of the Western Conference and 9th among the 12 teams then in MLR. Of their three wins that season, two were against the Dallas Jackals in a rivalry match dubbed the Dog Bowl.[12]
Home field
The team plays its home matches at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, Illinois.[13][14]
Players and personnel
Current squad
The Chicago Hounds squad for the 2026 Major League Rugby season is:
| 2026 Chicago Hounds squad | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Props
Hookers
Locks
|
Back row
Scrum-halves
Fly-halves
|
Centres
Wings
Fullbacks |
| (c) denotes the team captain. Bold denotes internationally capped players. * denotes players qualified to play for United States on residency or dual nationality. |
Head coaches
Sam Harris (2023–2024)[16]
- Chris Latham (2025–present)[4]
Assistant coaches
- Todd Dammers, Defense, Forwards Coach (2025–present)
Noel Reid, Attack, Backs Coach (2025–present)
Jamie Beamish, Head of Performance/Strength & Conditioning (2023–present)
Records
Season standings
| Season | Conference | Regular season | Postseason | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | +/− | BP | Pts | Pld | W | L | F | A | +/− | Result | |||
| 2023 | Western | 5th | 16 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 327 | 497 | -170 | 8 | 20 | - | - | - | - | - | - | Did not qualify | |
| 2024 | Eastern | 3rd | 16 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 454 | 387 | +67 | 11 | 45 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 62 | 44 | +18 | Won East Conference Eliminator Game (New Orleans Gold) Lost Conference Final (New England Free Jacks) | |
| 2025 | Eastern | 2nd | 16 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 422 | 353 | +69 | 9 | 52 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 47 | 37 | +10 | Won East Conference Semifinal (Old Glory DC) Lost Conference Final (New England Free Jacks) | |
| Totals | 48 | 22 | 1 | 25 | 1,203 | 1,237 | -34 | 28 | 117 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 109 | 81 | +28 | 2 postseason appearances | |||
Honors
Players
| Honor | Player Name | Season |
|---|---|---|
| MLR Rookie of the Year | Peyton Wall | 2025 |
2023 season
The Hounds played 16 games in the 2023 season. Home games were played at SeatGeek Stadium. The Hounds had their first-ever regular season victory on March 18 against the Dallas Jackals.
| Date | Opponent | Home/Away | Location | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| February 18 | Old Glory DC | Away | Segra Field | Lost, 42–27 |
| March 5 | Utah Warriors | Home | SeatGeek Stadium | Lost, 14–10 |
| March 11 | Toronto Arrows | Home | SeatGeek Stadium | Lost, 34–31 |
| March 18 | Dallas Jackals | Home | SeatGeek Stadium | Won, 24–22 |
| March 26 | Seattle Seawolves | Home | SeatGeek Stadium | Lost, 27–5 |
| April 2 | Houston SaberCats | Home | SeatGeek Stadium | Lost, 38–21 |
| April 8 | New England Free Jacks | Away | Veterans Memorial Stadium | Lost, 31–19 |
| April 16 | San Diego Legion | Away | Snapdragon Stadium | Lost, 48–24 |
| April 23 | NOLA Gold | Home | SeatGeek Stadium | Lost, 37–24 |
| May 6 | Rugby ATL | Away | Silverbacks Park | Lost, 27–12 |
| May 14 | New York Ironworkers | Home | SeatGeek Stadium | Lost, 21–20 |
| May 20 | Seattle Seawolves | Away | Starfire Sports Complex | Lost, 35–13 |
| May 27 | Houston SaberCats | Away | SaberCats Stadium | Lost, 40–33 |
| June 3 | San Diego Legion | Home | SeatGeek Stadium | Lost, 14–36 |
| June 10 | Utah Warriors | Away | Zions Bank Stadium | Won, 26–24 |
| June 17 | Dallas Jackals | Away | Choctaw Stadium | Won, 29–28 |
