On Saturday, July 11 Urban Initiatives hosted our Inaugural Corporate Challenge Cup in Humboldt Park. Over 200 professionals came out to play in our 7v7 tournament. Players came from across the city and suburbs, and in total, 16 Chicago companies were represented: 1871, AbelsonTaylor, Allstate, CBRE, Citadel, Groupon, grubHub, JLL, Kirkland & Ellis, KPMG, Kraft, Macquarie, McDermott Will & Emery, Northern Trust, Spencer Stuart, and Storck. In the end, CBRE took home the Cup after beating out 1871 in a hard-fought final. In true Urban Initiatives fashion, everyone who came out won because we all had fun!
CBRE Team Captain and Corporate Challenge Cup Champion, Dave Mahoney said, “The Corporate Challenge Cup was the most fun I’ve had playing adult soccer. The atmosphere was incredible with a lot of other Chicago companies having a great time and playing hard to support Urban Initiatives’ outstanding mission and work! Hopefully next year will be even better with the support of more Chicago companies!”
Simba Gandari, who helped team CBRE raise the championship trophy, had a blast. “Playing in the Corporate Challenge Cup reminded me of the old days in Zimbabwe, where we played the game we loved for fun,” he said. “What made it even more special was that we were playing for a great cause. Can’t wait to play next year!” Junior Board member Talia Bucci who played for Team Kirkland added, “I had a great time at the Cup. I made new friends, got a great workout, and blew off some competitive steam – all while knowing that we were helping to ensure the UI kids would have the same chance. Aside from missing my PK shot, it was an all-around great day.”
“It was awesome to see so many adults having as much fun as our kids do on the field. I look forward to seeing this event grow in the future,” said Urban Initiatives’ Co-Founder and Executive Director Jim Dower.
Thank you to all of our participating teams, volunteers, the Chicago Park District, Gatorade, Limelight Catering, and Nike for making the event a success. Special thanks goes out to all our team captains for their efforts in coordinating participants. We greatly appreciate your support!
