My perception is that a good chunk of monied talent in Chicago is concentrated on the north side. That leads to many going to Fire (name brand), with facilities on Talman and Addison. But it also means that there are a number of clubs on the north side, but also those families are maybe within striking distance of being able to join some of the suburban teams. If one looks at the west side or the south side, the number of teams and their quality seems to drop off. As a south sider, I can't think of any big clubs outside of KICS and Chicago City that have outposts near here. Otherwise I have to commute to Indiana (Indiana Elite) or Orland Park (Southland United, and they're only big in that they combine with Plainfield United, as two former Chicago Fire Juniors teams), or far west to Naperville. Vernon Hills and Schaumburg and even Talman are more than 1.25 hours in rush hour traffic, which just isn't sustainable day after day. So yeah, I'm hoping that City gets some facilities somewhere accessible. And as for coach turnover, that seems to be a bit of a new thing. When I was looking at the club four years ago, many if not most of their coaches had been with them for a number of years. I don't know many of the coaches today, but I know that TM is ambitious and wants to be coaching at the professional levels. One cannot fault him for that.
Evolution is suing Kieran Howarth, Galaxy Soccer Club and Brett Strang (DuPage County case 2024 CH 34).
Certainly not a good sign, but I guess there are certainly possibilities where the wordpress site sh*t the bed but it isn't necessarily financially related. They had both boys and girls teams playing the ECNL events in Dallas and Florida this month.
Yeah for sure - WordPress is garbage - sort of surprised they use that. Even our Rec Council is on a more advanced platform.
Go here: https://epay.18thjudicial.org/Clerk/caseNumberSearch.do Case number: 2024CH000043 Case documents not available online. To see details of case documents, you’d need to visit court house and see court filing on public access terminal. See here for details: https://www.18thjudicial.org/court-records.html
Apparently… Evo tried to get a restraining order against Galaxy to prevent them from hiring any coach or signing any player who has been with Evo within the last 6 months. It was denied.
Rumor has it they were trying to make staff sign non-compete contracts prior to the spring season that would prevent them from going elsewhere for 6 months or a year.
This is on ECNL. Fallout of letting Eclipse have a monopoly for years. Even now still having a badge without the ability to populate a regional roster that doesn’t mirror the ECNL roster.
Evolution Soccer Club Accuses Former Director of Attempted Takeover, Cites Pattern of Targeting In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in DuPage County Circuit Court, Evolution Soccer Club, Evolution Soccer Academy, and their founder Michael Newell allege a coordinated effort by former director Kieran Howarth and others to seize control of the organization. The lawsuit names Howarth, Galaxy Soccer Club, Brett Strang, Bunnyray Larmond, Elizabeth Kelly, and Lesley Klaiber as defendants. The central allegation revolves around Howarth's alleged attempt to orchestrate a merger between Evolution and Galaxy Soccer Club, a rival organization, without the knowledge or consent of Evolution's board or membership. However, the lawsuit goes beyond this singular attempt, revealing a wider pattern of behavior, according to the document. Multiple Clubs Targeted: The lawsuit details that Howarth allegedly explored similar mergers with Sockers FC and Eclipse, two other local clubs, in addition to Galaxy. This suggests a potential systematic effort to gain control of a larger soccer organization, raising concerns about Howarth's motives and methods. Collaboration and Manipulation: The document alleges Howarth collaborated with individuals within each targeted organization, including Strang at Galaxy, to push for unauthorized mergers. The lawsuit further details how Howarth allegedly recruited coaches at Evolution to pressure the board into approving the merger, potentially utilizing manipulative tactics to sway their opinions. Disinformation and Discord: The lawsuit accuses Howarth of spreading false information about Evolution's financial health and fostering dissent among coaches. This alleged tactic of sowing discord within the organization could have weakened Evolution from within, potentially making it more susceptible to outside influence. Misrepresentation and Theft: The document alleges that Howarth misrepresented himself as an owner of Evolution and made demonstrably false statements to third parties regarding the club's finances. Additionally, the lawsuit claims that Howarth took a club-issued phone he was using for work purposes. Seeking Relief and Answers: Evolution is seeking injunctive relief to prevent the defendants from further interfering with their operations and monetary damages to compensate for the alleged harm caused. The legal battle is likely to have a significant impact on the organization and its members, raising questions about the ethics of Howarth's alleged actions and the potential impact on the local youth soccer landscape if the claims are proven true.
I'm not sure if that lawsuit is really a good look for Evo. Frankly I would not be surprised if the un-rest sends top players elsewhere. I think the best effort would be termination altogether and then ley KH just fester in his own shit. Well... both parties may be festering in it at this point. Mention of Sockers... Unless Sockers were desperate, I highly doubt they would jump back into multiple locations again. Few clubs have been able to do that well and they certainly tanked it with Crystal Lake and Naperville.
I received a text about a statement sent out by Galaxy that the court threw out the case basically after a hearing.
I think the court only refused to implement the restraining order, that tried to limit player and coach movement . The actual lawsuit will probably drag on for a long time.
Heard this was in the works while we were down in Dallas. Apparently he's heading back to Ireland (I think it was Ireland). He wasn't pleased with Eclipse for multiple reasons, but primarily it was because Eclipse didn't do a good enough job supporting him and his reputation when all the Rory stuff came out. This is all passed down so it's 3rd, 4th, and 5th hand knowledge. And man, that Evo and Galaxy story is a wild ride. Fun to watch from a distance.... Probably not as much fun for the Naperville folks. This stuff is crazy. Just hope the girls make it out unscathed by all of this.