Chicago · Visitors
Plan a Chicago sports trip
One page for a checked get-in, a CTA pass, and the neighborhood that already has a train to the building. Weekend dates and weeknights in this file are both here. The old midweek URL redirects to this page. No hotel and no room rate is recommended.
Weekend games
Friday through Sunday, Oct. 16–18, and the next Friday through Sunday, Oct. 23–25. A missing price was not checked. These dates are this stretch of the calendar, not a claim that every future weekend looks the same.
- Chicago Stars FC (formerly Red Stars) vs Seattle Reign FC. Sun, Oct 18, 6:00 PM CT. Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, Evanston. get-in from $11. Includes fees. Prices checked Oct 14, 9:35 PM CT. Tracker, last checked 2 hr ago. Schedule
- Chicago Blackhawks vs Dallas Stars. Sat, Oct 17, 6:00 PM CT. United Center. get-in from $36. Does not include fees. Prices checked Oct 14, 9:35 PM CT. Tracker 7:35 PM CT. Schedule
- Chicago Bulls vs Washington Wizards (HOME OPENER). Sat, Oct 24, 7:00 PM CT. United Center. get-in from $39. Does not include fees. Prices checked Oct 14, 9:35 PM CT. Schedule
- Chicago Bulls vs Minnesota Timberwolves (PRESEASON). Fri, Oct 16, 7:00 PM CT. United Center. get-in from $35. Does not include fees. Prices checked Oct 14, 9:35 PM CT. Schedule
- Chicago Blackhawks vs Montreal Canadiens. Fri, Oct 23, 7:00 PM CT. United Center. Unpriced until checked. Schedule
- Chicago Stars FC vs Houston Dash (Fan Appreciation; LED batons first 6,000). Fri, Oct 23, 7:00 PM CT. Martin Stadium, Evanston. Unpriced until checked. Schedule
- Chicago Blackhawks vs Florida Panthers. Sun, Oct 25, 2:00 PM CT. United Center. Unpriced until checked. Schedule
Among weekend dates, the Stars’ Sunday game includes fees in the checked price. The Friday Bulls game is preseason. The Saturday Blackhawks price does not include fees. Oct. 23 and Oct. 25 were not priced.
Midweek games
- Chicago Blackhawks vs Winnipeg Jets. Thu, Oct 15, 7:00 PM CT. United Center. get-in from $11. Does not include fees. Prices checked Oct 14, 9:35 PM CT. Tracker 8:55 PM CT. Schedule
- Chicago Bears vs New England Patriots (Prime Video). Thu, Oct 22, 7:15 PM CT. Soldier Field. get-in from $329. Does not include fees. Prices checked Oct 14, 10:12 PM CT. Bears tracker, Patriots row. Schedule
- Chicago Fire. In season but no home game Oct 15-25. Last was Oct 14 vs Philadelphia; next is Wed Oct 28 7:30 PM vs Orlando City at Soldier Field No get-in was checked. Fire schedule
The Oct. 15 Blackhawks game is the best verified deal in the file when its get-in is still inside 48 hours. The Oct. 22 Bears price is a tracker get-in and does not include fees.The Oct. 28 Fire match is on the schedule and is unpriced until checked. Later Blackhawks dates that were not verified stay off this list.
Ranked get-insFull home scheduleBlackhawks ticketsBears ticketsBulls ticketsFire ticketsHow ticket apps show fees
Day Pass and Ventra
For one game and the ride back, the 1-Day pass is the product the fare chart prices. The chart is labeled effective February 20, 2023. Read on Oct. 15, 2026, it still showed these prices. A news report of a later increase is not the chart, so it is not used here.
- 1-Day CTA/Pace Pass $5. 3-Day $15. 7-Day $20. 30-Day $75. A pass activates on first use.
- Rail $2.50. Bus $2.25. Cash on the bus is $2.50. Rail from O’Hare is $5 unless an unlimited pass covers it.
- Up to two transfers within two hours are free.
- Load a pass onto a Ventra Card or a contactless bank card at a vending machine, online, in the Ventra app, or at a retailer. A disposable 1-Day Ventra Ticket is $5 at any vending machine. A disposable 3-Day ticket is sold only at O’Hare and Midway.
- A new Ventra Card is $5, refunded as transit value if you register it within 90 days.
- The same chart lists the #128 Soldier Field Express at $5 round trip and says passes are accepted. CTA runs that bus from Union Station and Ogilvie on Bears game days. It is not a Fire-only bus.
- CTA also describes a Regional Day Pass: unlimited rides on CTA, Metra, and Pace in a single day, Ventra app only. The fare chart we read did not list its price, so none is printed here.
Which neighborhood is next to which venue
Stay near the stop, not near a hotel list. These are the neighborhoods already used on the bar and venue guides.
- United Center, Near West Side. Thursday, Oct. 15, and this weekend’s Bulls and Blackhawks games are here. Green Line Damen is two blocks south and one block east. Green or Pink at Ashland/Lake, or Blue at Illinois Medical District, also work. Bus #19 is the game-night express. The West Loop is just east. No Metra station is at the door. The Barn is the sourced Blackhawks bar, at 1659 W. Ogden.
United Center guideWest Loop barsBulls ticketsBlackhawks tickets
- Soldier Field and Wintrust Arena, South Loop. Thursday, Oct. 22, and Wednesday, Oct. 28, are at Soldier Field. Not a home Bears or Sky game this weekend. Red, Orange, or Green to Roosevelt, then a walk or the #146. Metra Electric stops at Museum Campus/11th Street and 18th Street. Wintrust is three blocks east of Green Line Cermak-McCormick Place. The Staley says it opens at 9 a.m. when the Bears kick off at noon. Oct. 22 is a night home date, so that 9 a.m. line is for a noon kick, not this one.
Soldier Field guideWintrust Arena guideSouth Loop barsBears ticketsFire ticketsBears watch bars
- Wrigley Field, Wrigleyville and Lakeview. The Cubs season is over. The team’s budget guide says weeknight games, especially earlier in the season, tend to have lower demand. That is a demand note, not a 2027 price. When games return, Red Line Addison is half a block east of the park, and buses #22 and #152 stop at Clark and Addison.
Wrigley Field guideWrigleyville barsLakeview barsCubs tickets
- Rate Field, Bridgeport, and Wintrust for the Sky. Both seasons are over. Red Line Sox-35th is a block west of Rate Field. Green Line 35th-Bronzeville-IIT is three blocks east. Metra Rock Island stops at 35th Street. Green Line Cermak-McCormick Place is the Sky stop.
- SeatGeek Stadium, Bridgeview. The Fire’s first team is at Soldier Field, not here. From the Orange Line at Midway, the #63 then a walk or Pace 386. From Green Line Harlem/Lake, Pace 307. No Bridgeview bar guide is on this site.
- Martin Stadium, Evanston. Sunday, Oct. 18 is Chicago Stars FC against Seattle. The sources used for the CTA page do not name a CTA route, so none is listed. Do not treat a guessed Purple Line walk as a direction.
Buying the seat
Start from the ranked list, then open the team guide before you buy. Student Rush is the Blackhawks’ college window: text STUDENT to 242957. It is select home games, not every game, and the text comes 24–48 hours before puck drop. The Bulls Student Pass uses a .edu address and caps an order at four tickets. Neither replaces the checked get-in. CUBS U is not on sale for a game this week.
Marketplace fees are a separate question. The ticket-app notesquote what each company says about all-in prices. A button there is an outbound app link only when its href in data/affiliates.json is filled in.Disclosure says the same thing.
Free and cheap game daysStudent rushBlackhawks Student RushBulls Student Pass
FAQ
What does a 1-Day CTA pass cost?
The CTA fare chart, labeled effective February 20, 2023, and still showing those prices when read on Oct. 15, 2026, lists a 1-Day CTA/Pace Pass at $5. It is unlimited for one day and activates on the first use.
Is the Bears game this Sunday at Soldier Field?
No. Sunday, Oct. 18 is away at Atlanta, noon CT, on FOX. The next home game in this file is Thursday, Oct. 22, against the Patriots.
What is the cheapest checked midweek game in this file?
Blackhawks vs. Jets on Thursday, Oct. 15, get-in from $11, fees not included. Prices checked Oct. 14, 9:35 PM CT. It is rank 1 on the home page.
Is there a Fire match on a weeknight?
Wednesday, Oct. 28, 7:30 p.m., against Orlando City at Soldier Field. No get-in was checked, so none is printed. There is no Fire home match from Oct. 15 through Oct. 25.
Which neighborhood is next to the United Center?
The arena is on the Near West Side, at Madison and Damen. The West Loop is the neighborhood just east of it. There is no Metra station at the door. This page does not recommend a hotel.