I live in Albuquerque, NM and have Direct TV. Its pretty much the only way to get out of market football and baseball, except for MLB.tv for baseball where you can watch out of market games on your computer. I'm not sure but they might consider Chicago to be a local market for MLB.tv. There is a map on the website you can check out. Anyways, I love Direct TV. Their customer service has always been outstanding and I haven't ever had service issues with them in 6+ years. I did have Uverse for a year in Milwaukee before I went back to Direct TV upon moving to Albuquerque. I do have the Sports Package and what trwi said I can confirm. You cannot watch the pro games on the sports channels. You can watch most college games but the pro games are a no go. The way Direct TV has it set up is that based on your geographic area they have certain channels that are considered in your local market. Chicago may or may not be, but you can call the Direct TV people and they will tell you. I did enjoy U-Verse but moving out of state, their is no one that I would rather have for viewing my Packers and Brewers. Uverse just doesn't compare. Even if they did I might choose Direct TV just because of the phenomenal experience I have had with them.