Celtic History
The Palatine Celtic Soccer Club was founded in 1968 by Bill Hughes and Jimmy Kinsella, a transplanted Scotsman. Together, they were the first people in Palatine to organize local children into teams to play the game of soccer. Jimmy named the club after his home club, Glasgow Celtic.
The Palatine Celtic Soccer Club is affiliated with the Palatine Park District and provides youth soccer programs for girls and boys ages 4-18. Our programs feature over 1,700 players in the Palatine Celtic program. In 2018, we celebrated 50 years as a soccer club, one of Illinois' oldest and largest clubs.
Many Celtic players are current members of the Palatine HS and Fremd HS varsity teams, plus many more players at other schools in the surrounding area. Every year, the Palatine HS and Fremd HS varsity teams battle to take hold of the Kinsella Cup, named after our founder.
Palatine Celtic Soccer Club is also home to the Palatine Celtic Cup during Labor Day weekend featuring over 375 teams annually. We will be hosting our 43rd Celtic Cup in 2023 and looking forward to bringing close to 10,000 players into our community.
Kinsella Cup
This event honors one of our Palatine Celtic's Co-Founders, Jimmy Kinsella. Bill Hughes, our club's additional Co-Founder is on the right. Our club's 55-year history goes all the way back to 1968 when Jimmy and Bill organized a group of Palatine neighborhood boys into the very first Celtic team. Our club is honored twice a year when Fremd and Palatine HS Boys and Girls Varsity teams face off against each other in this traditional match.
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