FIRST PLACE FIRE LOOK FOR POINTS IN MATCH 13 AGAINST HOUSTON
This Friday, the Chicago Fire (5-1-6, 21 pts.) will play their second consecutive match at TOYOTA PARK as the team takes on the Houston Dynamo at 8 p.m. CT. Last Sunday, the Fire suffered their first defeat of the season, falling 3-0 to FC Dallas, a loss that ended the team's club record 11-game unbeaten streak to start the season. With 21 points through the first 12 matches, the Fire are in first place in the Eastern Conference, five points ahead of three teams: D.C. United, the Kansas City Wizards, and Toronto FC, who are vying for second place. The Fire's loss to Dallas not only ended their unbeaten streak, but they were also halted after a three game-winning steak through their last three road games. The team caught fire during their three game road swing that included wins against Toronto FC (2-0 win on May 16), New York Red Bulls (1-0 on May 24), and Chivas USA (3-2 on May 31) tying the 2009 league record for consecutive wins.
Although conceding 16 goals in 2009, Chicago is seeing success in the attack as the team is leading the league with 20 goals scored for an Eastern Conference best +4 goal differential. Last Sunday's match against FC Dallas was the first time the Fire had been shutout in 17 regular season games, dating back to Sept. 14, 2008 at Colorado. The game marked just the second time in 2009 that designated player Cuauhtémoc Blanco did not hit the field for the Fire, as the Mexican International reported to his national team last Friday after scoring two penalty kick goals in Thursday's win over Chivas USA. Blanco will miss this Friday's match against Houston as well. The Fire will have to play without the services of two more internationals this week as defenders Gonzalo Segares (Costa Rica) and Bakary Soumare (Mali) reported to their respective national teams following the match against Dallas. After playing three games last week the Fire will look to regenerate and rest before starting preparations for their match against the Houston Dynamo on Friday.
Tickets are still available for the Fire's game against Houston this Friday, June 5 (8 p.m.) by calling 888-MLS-FIRE or visiting the club's official website at www.chicago-fire.com.
CHICAGO FIRE/ATHLETICO "RECOVERY ROOM": JUNE 1, 2009
Probable:
None
Questionable:
None
Doubtful:
Conde - Left Shoulder Sprain
Out:
Woolard - Right Ankle Sprain
Injured Reserve:
Lowry - Left Knee Sprain, Carr - ACL Reconstruction
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE THE FIRE'S 13TH MATCH OF THE SEASON
• Thirteen of the Fire's 20 goals have been scored with left-footed shots.
• Thirteen of the Fire's 20 goals have been scored from inside the penalty area.
• Thirteen of the Fire's 20 goals have been scored during open play as opposed to off of set pieces.
A LOOK AT THE FIRE:
• The Fire sit in first place in the Eastern Conference with 21 points in 12 games played.
• With 20 goals in 12 games, the Fire lead the league in scoring - Chivas USA and D.C. United are tied for the second most goals in MLS with 17 apiece.
• While last Monday the Fire boasted the fewest goals allowed in the East (11), this week, after two matches, the Fire are tied for the most goals allowed in the East (16) as the Fire allowed two goals last Thursday against Chivas USA and three goals last Sunday against FC Dallas.
• After moving into first place in Week 9 with the 2-0 win at Toronto on May 16, the Fire have been at the top of the Eastern Conference standings for three consecutive weeks.
• Eight different players have finished for the Fire's 20 total goals this season: Blanco (3), Conde (1) Mapp (1), McBride (6), Nyarko (2), Pappa (3), Rolfe (3), and Segares (1).
• While designated player Cuauhtémoc Blanco leads the team with five assists, a total of 10 players have been helping the Fire to their impressive 20 goals in 12 games. (Banner-1, Blanco-5, Conde-1, Mapp-1, Nyarko-2, Pappa-2, Pause-2, Rolfe-1, Segares-1, and Ward-1)
• The Fire (5-1-6, 21 pts.) are second overall in MLS with a winning percentage of .667. Chivas USA (7-2-3, 24 pts.) has a winning percentage of .708. The Fire's opponent this week, the Houston Dynamo (5-2-3, 18 pts.), has the third best record across the league with a winning percentage of .650.
• Both the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference have an average winning percentage of .500.
• The Fire are scoring the majority of their goals at the ends of the two halves with five goals scored in the final 15 minutes of the first half, and seven scored in the final 15 minutes of the match.
• The Fire have a record of 3-0-4 against Eastern Conference teams and 2-1-2 against Western Conference teams.
FIRE GO INTERNATIONAL - THREE PLAYERS JOIN NATIONAL TEAMS FOR WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS
Chicago Fire players Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Mexico), Gonzalo Segares (Costa Rica), and Bakary Soumare (Mali) have been called to serve with their respective national teams for World Cup Qualifying matches. All three players will be unavailable for the Fire's match against Houston this Friday, June 4. Blanco and Mexico will play two World Cup Qualifiers, on Saturday, June 6 against El Salvador in San Salvador (9:00 p.m. CT, Telemundo) and on Wednesday, June 10 against Trinidad & Tobago at home in Estadio Azteca (9:30 p.m. CT, Telemundo). Segares and Costa Rica will face the U.S. Men's National Team at Saprissa Stadium in San Jose on Wednesday, June 3 (9 p.m. CT, ESPN) before taking on Trinidad & Tobago on Saturday, June 6 on the road in Bacolet, Tobago (5 p.m. CT). Soumare and Mali will face Ghana on Sunday, June 7 (2 p.m. CT) in Bamako, Mali. Soumare will serve a one game suspension on June 13 (against D.C. United) for his red card in last Sunday's match against Dallas. Soumare will next be available for selection for the Fire's match on July 4 against Colorado after he returns from another World Cup Qualifier on Sunday, June 21 (2 p.m. CT) against Benin again at home in the Stade du 26 mars in Bamako, Mali. Blanco and Segares will return for the Fire's match against D.C. United at RFK Stadium on June 13 (6:30 p.m. CT, My50 Chicago).
C.J. BROWN MAKES A MOVE INTO THE TOP 20
Fire captain C.J. Brown is currently in his 12th season with Chicago and the Fire Original is the Fire career leader in MLS regular season games played (254), games started (249), as well as holding the squad's all-time lead in minutes played (22,026). With last Sunday's appearance, Brown moves into a tie with Eddie Pope for 20th in the league standings for career games played. With 249 games started, Brown is ranked 17th in the all-time league standings for games started; just one start behind former teammate Diego Gutierrez (250) and two behind Pope (251). To break into the top 10, Brown will have to pass up Mike Petke (currently with New York Red Bulls) who has started 268 games to date.
ROLFE MOVING UP IN THE FIRE STANDINGS
With his game-winning goal against New York on May 24, Fire forward Chris Rolfe has taken sole possession of second place in the Chicago Fire career goal scoring standings. Former Fire striker Josh Wolff previously held the position with 32 goals scored. Rolfe has achieved his 33 goals in 105 games played through five seasons. Wolff achieved his 32 goals in 83 matches played through five seasons. Holding onto first place in the Fire's career goal scoring records is former forward Ante Razov who recorded 76 goals in 155 games through seven seasons.
FIRE INTRODUCE THREE NEW TICKET PACKAGES
The Chicago Fire have introduced three new ticket packages: a twenty seat Pick 'em, the 4-4-4 Pack-game, and two three-game packages that offer fans both flexibility in choosing game dates and a range of ticket purchase opportunities. The Twenty Seat Pick-em Plan includes two free tickets to LA Galaxy game. The 20 tickets are redeemable for any remaining Chicago Fire home game. The 4-4-4 Pack gets you four tickets, four hot dogs and four Pepsi drinks for just $79. This ticket package is available for all Chicago Fire regular season games. This is a great deal for an affordable and exciting family outing. With the Three Game Weekend and Rivalry Packs, fans can choose three tickets from a series of weekend games (7/18 vs. San Jose, 8/1 vs. Real Salt Lake, and 8/29 vs. vs. D.C. United) and Rivalry games (8/29 vs. D.C. United, 9/26 vs. Toronto FC and 10/22 vs. Chivas USA). Fans can choose seats from several sections of the stadium, including: Club ($75 per ticket); Center Circle ($50 per ticket); MLPD ($45 per ticket); Premier ($35 per ticket); Corner Kick ($28 per ticket); and Firehouse ($22 per ticket). Tickets purchasers will also have priority in purchasing playoff tickets. For more information, call 888-MLS-FIRE or visit www.chicago-fire.com.
MLS ALL-STAR VOTING - GET YOUR VOTES IN NOW
Major League Soccer fans can go online to the League's official web site
www.MLSnet.com
to select 11 players they would like to see take on English Premier League club Everton FC in the 2009 MLS All-Star Game. The online fan balloting program, which concludes on July 6, will comprise 25% of the total vote for the All-Star First XI, with coaches and general managers, players, and media each holding 25% of the vote. The 14th annual MLS midsummer showcase will bring together Major League Soccer's best for a marquee match up on July 29, 2009, versus famed English Premier League club Everton FC at Rio Tinto Stadium in Sandy, Utah, the home of Real Salt Lake. The game will be televised in the U.S. on ESPN2 and TeleFutura at 9:30 p.m. ET. Fans can vote for the All-Star First XI online by selecting one goalkeeper, three defenders, five midfielders, and two forwards. Fans can vote up to 10 times per day.
FIRE PREMIER PDL TEAM QUALIFIES FOR LAMAR HUNT U.S. OPEN CUP
The Chicago Fire PDL squad has qualified for the annual Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup with a 1-0 win against the Fort Wayne Fever on May 24. The team will take on the Milwaukee Bavarians, the Region 2 Amateur Champion, in their first game on June 9. The match will be held at the TOYOTA PARK training field (located on the north side of TOYOTA PARK). Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. CT. This is the third time the team has qualified for the U.S. Open Cup tournament in its nine seasons, also qualifying in 2005 and 2004. The Fire Premier secured their position after due to their first place ranking and impressive record of 3-0-1 in their four match-ups. The Fire PDL is one of eight teams from the 67-team Premier Development League to qualify for the tournament.
The Fire first team has qualified for the tournament as well. Dates, locations, and opponents for the Chicago Fire first team's participation in the Open Cup will be announced at a later date.
JOHN THORRINGTON IS UNIVISION CHICAGO'S FEATURED PLAYER OF THE MONTH
The Fire and Univision Chicago are partnering to feature a different Chicago Fire player or coach each month as the Univision Chicago Player of the Month. Midfielder John Thorrington is the Fire Player of the Month for June and will not only be featured each Monday during the Univision 10 o'clock newscast during the "Chicago Fire: Conexión Máxima" segment, Thorrington will contribute to Univision Radio's Nuevo Dia program on Monday mornings and connect with fans directly through a Live Chat and blog entries on Univsion.com. Head Coach Denis Hamlett was featured during the month of April and midfielder Marco Pappa was featured in May.
CHICAGO FIRE ANNOUNCE SUPERLIGA COMPETITION DATES AND TEAMS
Major League Soccer and the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol have unveiled the participating teams, venues and schedule for the 2009 edition of SuperLiga™. The four participating MLS teams are: Chicago Fire, New England Revolution, Chivas USA and Kansas City Wizards. The four Mexican clubs participating in 2009 are: 2008 playoff contender San Luis, Santos Laguna (led by national team star Oswaldo Sanchez), Tigres UANL (led by Lucas Lobos), and Atlas, the young and exciting club led by former Mexican national team coach Ricardo Lavolpe. The Fire will face San Luis on June 20 (7 p.m. CT), Chivas USA on June 23 (7 p.m. CT) and Tigres UANL on June 27 (7 p.m. CT). The Fire will host a doubleheader for their match on June 23 as San Luis and Tigres UANL face off following the Fire's match (9 p.m.). Tickets for both the single games on June 20 and 27, as well as the doubleheader on June 23, are on sale now through the TOYOTA PARK box office by calling 888-MLS-FIRE, clicking on the TICKETS section of the team's official website, www.chicago-fire.com, or through all Ticketmaster outlets,
www.Ticketmaster.com
.
The Fire will offer a special Chicago Fire SuperLiga Pack which includes a ticket to all three of the SuperLiga dates at TOYOTA PARK and fans that purchase the Chicago Fire SuperLiga Pack will also receive a free ticket for the Fire versus Chivas USA match on Oct. 22. SuperLiga packages start at just $71 and will be available through the TOYOTA PARK box office, by calling 888-MLS-FIRE or through www.chicago-fire.com.
4-v-4 FUTBOLITO TOURNAMENT COMES TO CHICAGO ON AUGUST 22
MLS Futbolito, the largest touring Hispanic event hosted by a U.S. professional sports league, comes to Chicago on August 22 at Riis Park, 6100 W. Fullerton Ave. The all-day 4-v-4 tournament is open to players of all ages, abilities and affiliations. Team rosters can consist of up to seven players (four field players and three substitutes) and each team will play in round-robin action, with the possibility of advancing to the single-elimination championship playoff. Teams registered for the competition will be divided according to age groups and competitive levels with winners in each division receiving prizes. In addition to the games, each registered player will receive a ticket to an MLS match (in applicable markets), a Futbolito t-shirt, and the chance to win prizes from the presenting sponsors as well as associate sponsors. For more information or to register a team, visit the official website:
www.MLSFutbolito.com
or call 888-MLS-FUTBOLITO.
PHISH SUMMER TOUR STOPS AT TOYOTA PARK
On their first summer tour in five years, Phish has announced a concert date at TOYOTA PARK on Tuesday, August 11th. Tickets are on sale now. Reserved and general admission tickets are priced at just $49.50 and are available at all Ticketmaster outlets including the TOYOTA PARK ticket offices, Ticketmaster.com and by calling (800) 745-3000.
BUFFETT RETURNS TO TOYOTA PARK
After the success of last summer's two TOYOTA PARK concerts, Jimmy Buffett and the Coral Reefer Band will return to the stadium again this summer for two more unforgettable concert experiences as part of the "Summerzcool" Tour 2009. The concert dates are set for Saturday, Aug. 8 and Saturday, Aug. 15. The seating setup at the stadium will be similar to last year's concerts, as all seats will be reserved both on the field and in the stadium bowl. Tickets are on sale now through all Ticketmaster outlets including the TOYOTA PARK box office, Tickemaster.com, and by calling (800) 745-3000. For more information visit
www.toyotapark.com
.
BLANCO'S 'DIRECTO AL BLANCO' RADIO PROGRAM TUESDAY
"Directo al Blanco" a full-hour live radio program hosted by Fire midfielder Cuauhtémoc Blanco will air this and every Tuesdays at 6:00 p.m. CT. Listeners are encouraged to call and talk to Blanco about the latest soccer-related news regarding the Chicago Fire, Major League Soccer, and the Mexican Primera Division. The show airs nationally on RadioCadena stations in Chicago (WRTO-AM), Las Vegas (KLSQ-AM), Los Angeles (KTNQ-AM), San Francisco (KLOK-AM), El Paso (KAMA-AM), San Antonio(KCOR-AM), Dallas (KFLC-AM), McAllen (KGBT-AM), Houston (KLAT-AM), New York (WADO-AM), and Miami (WQBA-AM).
