We are extremely excited to announce that effective August 1, 2016 Mike Skupien will be the new Boys Director of Coaching for Team Chicago Soccer Club. Mike has had a very successful career on the boys’ side at several local clubs. He is joining us from Chicago Fire Juniors where he just led his U17 boys to the Regional final and a successful run in both National League and MRL Premier I play – the highest level of competition outside of the USSF Development Academy.

Mike holds a “B” license from the United States Soccer Federation as well as a Premier license from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. Mike will be pursuing his “A” license once he gets up to speed here at Team Chicago.

Mike is a Chicagoland native who graduated from Lyons Township H.S. and was a standout player at Carthage College and then Aurora University, where he also served as an assistant coach to the men’s team. He served as the Director of East Boys & Girls for Eclipse Soccer Club for three years and as a staff coach for the Chicago Fire at Toyota Park as well as the South and West locations for five years. He also served as the Head Boys Varsity Coach at Plainfield North H.S.

Please, join us in welcoming Mike to the Team Chicago family. He will be charged with growing and improving the boys’ program, and is scheduled to serve as the head coach of the 1999-98 Elite, 2003 Elite, and 2004 Elite teams for the upcoming season. Over the month of July Mike will be holding some training/supplemental tryout sessions for the 1998-2003 boys, so he can familiarize himself with his players.

Team Chicago Academy-2002 Elite standout Tamara Hernandez is the latest in a long list of Team Chicago players who have received National Team call-ups. Tamara is currently spending 9 days in Mexico City with the Mexico U15 National Team.

¡Felicitaciones! Tamara

Team Chicago is excited to announce that Merit Stloukal has been hired as the new Director of Goalkeeping. Merit will oversee all aspects of Team Chicago goalkeeping from U8 through U19 on both the boys’ and girls’ side. She will also also work closely with Technical Director Phil Nielsen, Girls Director Dave Lovercheck, and the new Boys Director (to be announced shortly) on curriculum development for the Team Chicago goalkeepers.

Merit, who is joining us from Campton United, is one of the top goalkeeping coaches in Chicagoland. She has been coaching in the area since 1998 at local clubs including Strikers Fox Valley, TCSA, and Kaneland United. She also spent two years as the goalkeeper coach at Northern Illinois University. Currently, Merit is serving as an Assistant Coach for Julie Bergstrom at Waubonsie Valley High School and as member of the IYSA ODP Goalkeeping staff. Her successes include working with Northern Illinois University standout goalkeeper Lindsey Curnock, who broke NIU and MAC goalkeeping records under her tutelage, and St. Charles North All-State goalkeeper Erin Kane an All-American at UW-Milwaukee, who later played professionally with St. Louis Athletica with US National Team goalkeeper Hope Solo.

Stloukal (Elzey) is an Illinois All-State and Parade Magazine All-American from St. Charles High School in St. Charles, Illinois. She led the St. Charles powerhouse to two state championship titles and one third place finish. A four-year starter and scholarship goalkeeper at Indiana University, Merit earned All-Big Ten, Regional, and All- Big Ten Academics honors, and led the team as Big Ten Champions to IU’s first NCAA tournament. Merit was voted team MVP all four years and team captain. She was also the goalkeeper for the 1997 Chicago Cobras National Champion Runners-Up team and a member of the 2000 Chicago Cobra National Championship team. As a youth player, Merit was a member of Olympic Development Program Regional Team and the National Team pool with invitations to play internationally. After her collegiate career, Merit received offers to play in Denmark.

Merit holds the USSF National D License and NSCAA Level 1 and 2 Goalkeeping Diplomas. She resides in Sugar Grove with her husband – Byron – and three kids. Please, joins us in welcoming Merit to the Team Chicago family.

Over the later half of May’s weekends, Team Chicago-Recife U9 and a U10 hybrid of Team Chicag-Fluminense, Brasil Boys, and Corinthians traveled to Decatur to compete in the Midstate Cup as well as staying closer to home for the Oswego Soccer Classic. The boys did a fantastic job displaying their skills through inconsistent weather, roster and rule changes, and other challenges that tested the boys’ technical ability, teamwork, and positional versatility.

Each team’s championship final came down to the wire in one goal or overtime thrillers, and when all was said and done they each earned one runner’s up medal and Recife came away champions at Midstate. While playing against teams that already use full-time goalies and positional players, one beautifully telling stat projects the boys’ overall knowledge and ability. Through the two tournaments, Fluminense and Recife used 9 and 8 different players in goal and had 8 and 9 different goal scorers respectively.

Congratulations to the boys and Head Coach Jesse Salazar for a great Team Chicago showing.

On a sadder note we have to announce that Coach Jesse is leaving Team Chicago. Jesse has been an integral part of Team Chicago as well as WAA soccer and PlayUSA over the past decade. Having coached everything from the youngest boys to the oldest girls in Team Chicago as well as WAA Rec and taught speed and agility classes for WAA Jesse has been an institution within the organization.

We want to thank Jesse for all his tireless work and wish him all the best in his new gig at La Grange Celtics. Jesse will be joining another former Team Chicago legend – Andrew Taylor – who is the Assistant Director of Coaching for the Celtics.

We are sad to announce that effective Monday, June 13, 2016 Boys’ U10-19 Director of Coaching Herb Schuler will be leaving Team Chicago. Herb will be moving on to become the Executive Director of Hattiesburg FC in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

Herb has been an extremely valued member of our staff over the past two years, especially with his work in the newly created role of Boys’ U10-19 Director of Coaching. He has helped solidify and grow our boys’ program, and we are confident that his successor will be able to build off of the strong foundation Herb has helped put in place.

Team Chicago will undertake a national search to find its new Boys’ U10-19 Director of Coaching, and we plan to announce the new hire by mid-summer with a start date of August 1, 2016.

Herb would like to share the following words with the club:

“It pains me to leave Team Chicago. It was a very tough decision to make in the wake of the success of the Team Chicago boys’ teams over the last two years. It is a decision that was made for my family and my long-term professional growth. I also have extended family rooted in the South, so this move brings us closer to them.

My wife – former Team Chicago coach Nikki Schuler – will be a full-time teacher and soccer coach at Oak Grove H.S. Oak Grove is the high school where Brett Favre has coached the last three years.
Brett is still coaching and funding all programs.

In addition to my duties as the Executive Director of Hattiesburg FC, I will also be an Assistant Women’s Soccer Coach at William Carey University. William Carey is one of the top NAIA programs in the country and went to the NAIA Final Four last season.

My time at Team Chicago has been special and I have loved every minute of it. The people, players, and staff have been amazing and I will always look back fondly. It is a first class club and I wish the club, and in particular the boys, all the best in the future.”

We wish Herb and Nikki all the best in their new life in Mississippi and thank them for all their hard work for Team Chicago.