Chicago Steel moving out of Geneva’s Fox Valley Ice Arena

The Chicago Steel announced Tuesday that the team will relocate to the west side of Chicago and begin USHL play in the new Championship Arena at Fifth Third Arena starting in the 2026-2027 season.

The Steel will play the 2025-2026 hockey season at Fox Valley Ice Arena in Geneva before relocating in the summer of 2026.

“We recognize that this move will be difficult for many of our loyal fans,” Steel president Dan Lehv said in a statement, “however, for the Steel to continue to evolve both on and off the ice, this change is necessary.”

The Steel will play and practice at the venue’s new Championship Arena, part of a 135,000 square foot expansion project expected to be completed in 2026. The arena will feature stadium-style seating, a state-of-the-art center-hung video board with additional video ribbons at each end of the ice, and elevated sound and lighting.

Expanded dining options, premium hospitality spaces, and Centennial Hall, home to the recently-announced Blackhawks Hall of Fame, are all centerpieces of the expansion.

The Steel began playing at Fox Valley Ice Arena in 2015.

“For our fans interested in learning more about our new home, we'd encourage you to visit our website, and more information will be available over the coming weeks and months as we prepare for our downtown debut,” Lehv said in the statement. “We hope to see you this fall in Geneva for one final celebratory season of Steel hockey at Fox Valley Ice Arena.”