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Chicago State will play its inaugural football season in one of the few pro sports venues in the FCS, SeatGeek Stadium, the former home of the MLS’s Chicago Fire and NWSL’s Chicago Red Stars. However, it comes at a high cost. The Cougars had originally planned to play at Gately Stadium, a local high school venue, before it underwent renovations. Thus, the Cougars had to “settle” for the former MLS stadium. Unfortunately, it could cause an unnecessary financial hardship for the struggling university.
This financial challenge is reflected in the contract between Chicago State University and SeatGeek Stadium’s licensor, The Village of Bridgeview, Illinois, which shows an agreement that heavily favors Bridgeview. The university must pay $25,000 in rental fees for each home game, a non-refundable $25,000 deposit, as well as an undisclosed insurance cost. Furthermore, SeatGeek Stadium’s licensors will receive $2 for every ticket sold by the Cougars. Finally, Chicago State retains zero revenue from concessions and must staff each home game independently.
While $25,000 is not a particularly high cost for renting a pro venue like SeatGeek Stadium, for Chicago State, the auxiliary costs create a nearly insurmountable barrier to profitability, especially given its limited fan support.
Chicago State has one of the worst fan bases in Division I. The men’s basketball team notably drew 27 fans to a home game against conference mate St. Francis (PA). While the game’s occurrence on a Monday afternoon somewhat excuses the low turnout, the Cougars’ two sub-200 turnouts for Saturday games are inexcusable.
| Opponent | Enrollment | Distance From Bridgeview | 2025 Home Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Lauderdale | 314 | 1353 | Unknown |
| Kentucky Christian | 500 | 415 | Unknown |
| Norfolk State | 6557 | 889 | 21212 |
| Roosevelt | 4600 | 15 | 799 |
| Virginia Lynchburg | 125 | 719 | Unknown |
Sources: Department of Education (VUL), Department of Education (UFL), Roosevelt University, Kentucky Christian University, Norfolk State University, Hero Sports
Most of Chicago State’s opponents are unable to make up for this lack of support. Kentucky Christian, Fort Lauderdale, and Virginia-Lynchburg all have enrollments below 1000 and are hundreds of miles away. Roosevelt is a natural crosstown rival, but it has its own attendance struggles. The Lakers averaged 799 fans per home game, including a crowd of 592 fans to see Division II’s then #1 team, Ferris State. Norfolk State, with well-known head coach Michael Vick, is Chicago State’s only realistic chance to break even.
However, will Vick’s star power and name recognition draw casual Chicago fans?
The “Vick Effect” was hard to quantify. While it created attendance peaks for Norfolk State’s road games at Wagner and Wofford, the allure of Vick struggled to attract fans for the Spartans’ games against Howard and North Carolina Central.
While Michael Vick and Norfolk State could give Chicago State its best attendance of the season, it may not be enough to offset the potential financial losses the other home games bring. Michael Vick’s presence as Norfolk State’s head coach, a.k.a. “The Vick Effect”, had mixed outcomes for the Spartans’ FCS opponents in 2025. The table below compares Norfolk State’s attendance in every FCS road game except for Delaware State (more on that later).
| Opponent | Attendance | Attendance of Last Home Meeting With Norfolk State | % Difference | Average 2025 Attendance | % Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wagner | 3135 | N/A | N/A | 2583 | 21.4% |
| Hampton | 9710 | 100021 | -3.1% | 5245 | 85.1% |
| Wofford | 4844 | N/A | N/A | 3722 | 30.2% |
| North Carolina Central | 7225 | 10027 | -27.9% | 8262 | -12.6% |
| Howard | 1968 | 7684 | -74.4% | 6538 | -69.9% |
Source: Hero Sports
Norfolk State helped schools such as Wagner and Wofford generate above-average attendance, while creating attendance drops relative to not only Howard and North Carolina Central’s 2025 home attendance, but also their last home meetings against Norfolk State.
While the motives for Chicago State scheduling Norfolk State are not entirely clear, one can assume they saw the massive crowd that watched Norfolk State play Delaware at the Philadelphia Eagles’ Lincoln Financial Field. 47,266 fans watched former Eagle teammates DeSean Jackson and Michael Vick coach against each other on a Thursday night last October.
The attendance exceeded expectations, but the mere presence of two former NFL stars was not the main catalyst for this immense crowd. Michael Vick and DeSean Jackson were Eagles teammates for multiple years, creating local interest beyond the two fan bases.
No such tie exists between Michael Vick and Chicago. Norfolk State should bring Chicago State’s best home crowd of the season, due to the fascination of having an HBCU visit the predominantly Black school. However, the crowd will probably not come close to selling out 20,000-seat SeatGeek Stadium or help the school break even entirely on its lease.
The reality of the SeatGeek lease shows the uphill battle Chicago State faces. Despite having the odds stacked against them, the fact that they are even at this point in their football journey is a victory. Chicago State overcame numerous existential issues and athletic independence to get to this point. Unfortunately, it may have created another financial hurdle that may be too high to clear.
