In October of 2017, the Chicago Fire kicked off the MLS postseason with ambitions of claiming MLS Cup. It was a short-lived dream as the New York Red Bulls promptly ended it in 90 minutes with a 4-0 thumping in Bridgeview. Eight years on, they’re looking to right that
Tuesday night at Chase Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale, when Justin Reynolds scored the game winner over Inter Miami with a redirection off a perfectly-timed pass from Mauricio Pineda on a play set up by Brian Gutiérrez, the trio were part of something historic in the history of Major League Soccer.
The Chicago Fire Academy has emerged as one of MLS’s leading talent factories in recent seasons. Earlier this year, a club-record six academy graduates started a league game, while several homegrowns have been key contributors in a number of positions. One of the strongest age groups for the Fire
As the first leg of the 2015 CONCACAF Champions League final neared its conclusion, everything seemed to be going perfectly for the Montréal Impact. Head coach Frank Klopas had successfully steered the Impact through a difficult run, and they led Mexican powerhouse Club América 1-0 in the 88th minute at
As the final whistle of MLS Cup 1998 echoed through the Rose Bowl, Chicago Fire midfielders Chris Armas and Jesse Marsch raced to embrace goalkeeper Zach Thornton. The Men in Red had just clinched a stunning 2-0 victory over the league's first dynasty, D.C. United, before more
25 years ago today, history was made at Soldier Field. The Chicago Fire won their first-ever U.S. Open Cup, defeating the Columbus Crew in overtime to secure a historic double in their debut season. Frank Klopas wrote his name into Fire folklore that night, scoring a 99th-minute golden goal
From playing alongside Bastian Schweinsteiger in the Chicago Fire’s midfield to co-founding both the Chicago House Athletic Club and his vibrant events company, House Calls, during the latter years of his professional career, Drew Conner has left and continues to leave a mark on the city of Chicago as
A few months ago, a popular Premier League YouTuber challenged his followers to build a best XI for their club using one player from each season. While this was intended to be geared towards the Premiership, fans from different countries took the opportunity to apply this exercise for their own
The month is July. After his team stumbled through a rough patch in May and early June, Kei Kamara helped it find its form and start to look like a true competitor. They go into the All-Star break with eight wins, and Kamara earns an MLS All-Star nod. Controversy erupts,
I turn 24 this month. Throughout my time around peers, I’ve realized that I didn’t exactly grow up with the same cultural touchstones as everyone else. Like how in my television writing class a couple months ago I got yelled at for having never watched “Wizards of Waverly
"Kings of the Cup" It wasn’t a very long period of time, but the Chicago Fire really wanted to make that name stick. For that period of time, it made sense. That name was a selling point for U.S. Open Cup tickets from about 2011 to
As you may be well aware from my coverage of the Chicago Fire on Twitter, I’m a bit of a weeb. A lot of a weeb, in fact. And while you may think it’s not very helpful in this line of work, it does give me quite a
On December 11th, 2016, the Chicago Fire made a trade that would have tremendous knock-on effects for years to come. Standout goalkeeper Sean Johnson was sent to Atlanta United in exchange for allocation money, and it set in motion a revolving door at his position. For half a decade, the
All things considered, it’s been a pretty rough decade for the Chicago Fire. The Men in Red have twice finished dead last in MLS and have rarely been any sort of contender for any trophies. Attendance has often dwindled, and promising names have shuffled through the door but provided
Every season, being a Chicago Fire fan has felt more and more bleak. We have come to expect a certain level of mediocrity in the past decade or so. But it wasn’t always like that, nor should it remain like this. Prior to the 2007 season, a young capo