Chicago Hounds (rugby union)

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]

Chicago Hounds

Full name	Chicago Hounds
Founded	2022; 3 years ago (2022)
Location	Bridgeview, Illinois
Ground(s)	SeatGeek Stadium[1][2] (Capacity: 20,000)
CEO	James English[3]
Coach(es)	Chris Latham[4]
Captain(s)	Lucas Rumball
Most caps	Maclean Jones (33)
Top scorer	Luke Carty (127)
Most tries	Julian Dominguez, Dylan Fawsitt (14)
League(s)	Major League Rugby
2024	Eastern Conference Runners Up
Team kit
Official website
www.chicagohounds.com

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 2025 Major League Rugby season is:^[15]

Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.

Player Position Union Dylan Fawsitt Hooker United States Janus Venter Hooker South Africa Will Vakalahi Hooker United States Jackson Zabierek Hooker United States Charlie Abel Prop Australia Kody Baker Prop United States Liam Fletcher Prop Australia Ignacio Péculo Prop Uruguay Fakaʻosi Pifeleti Prop United States Paddy Ryan Prop United States Zurabi Zhvania Prop Georgia Hamish Bain Lock Scotland Tavius Sykora-Matthess Lock United States George Merrick Lock England James Scott Lock England Brad Tucker* Lock New Zealand Conall Boomer Back row Ireland Mason Flesch Back row Canada Maclean Jones Back row Australia Jake Kinneeveauk Back row United States Matthew Oworu Back row Canada Lucas Rumball Back row Canada Luke White Back row United States

Player Position Union Michael Baska Scrum-half United States Jason Higgins Scrum-half Canada Mitch Short Scrum-half Australia Christopher Hilsenbeck Fly-half United States Kian Meadon Fly-half South Africa Tim Swiel Fly-half South Africa Sam Walsh Fly-half United States Bryce Campbell Centre United States Ollie Devoto Centre England Noah Flesch Centre Canada Mark O'Keeffe Centre United States Peyton Wall Centre United States Nate Augspurger Wing United States Noah Brown Wing United States Julián Domínguez Wing Argentina Michael Hand Wing United States Adriaan Carelse Fullback South Africa Ben Pollack* Fullback Australia

• Senior 15s internationally capped players are listed in bold.
• * denotes players qualified to play for the United States on dual nationality or residency grounds.
• MLR teams are allowed to field up to ten overseas players per match.

Head coaches

• Sam Harris (2023–2024)^[16]

• Chris Latham (2025–present)^[4]

Assistant coaches

• Rob Webber, forwards coach (2023–present)
• Dave Clancy, attack, backs coach (2023–present)^[17]
• Jamie Beamish, Head of Performance (2023–present)^[17]

Captains

• Bryce Campbell
• Billy Meakes
• Luke White

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) 45-21 Lost Conference Final (New England Free Jacks)
Totals			32	11	1	20	781	884	-103	19	65	2	1	1	62	44	+18	1 postseason appearance

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