CHICAGO, IL - AEG, the Chicago Fire's parent company, in conjunction with Soccer United Marketing (SUM), announced that two of the world's most prominent soccer clubs, English Premier League Champion Chelsea FC and 2005 UEFA Champion's League runner-up A.C. Milan, will travel to the U.S. in late July to play a four-match series which includes matches against three-time Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Champion Chicago Fire and defending MLS Cup Champion DC United in the 2005 World Series of Football. The four-match World Series of Football will take place in Boston, Chicago, Washington D.C. and the New York/New Jersey area from July 24-31, 2005.
"With A.C. Milan and Chelsea FC we have arguably the two best and most important football teams in the world," said AEG President Tim Leiweke. "As they both have been extremely competitive at the highest level of professional soccer this should be a fantastic World Series of Football."
The kick-off match of the 2005 World Series of Football will feature the two world soccer powers head-to-head with A.C. Milan taking on Chelsea FC on Sunday, July 24, at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA (kick-off time TBD). Following their opening match with Chelsea FC, Milan will then head to Chicago to face 1998 MLS Cup Champion Chicago Fire at Soldier Field on Wednesday, July 27 (kick-off time TBD). The following night, July 28, at 7:00 p.m. CT, DC United will host Chelsea FC in Washington D.C.'s FedEx Field in a match that will be televised live on ESPN2.
Tickets to the Fire's friendly against A.C. Milan, which range from $30 to $75, will be available exclusively to fans following the Fire's match against the Kansas City Wizards on Saturday, June 18 (3:00 p.m. CT) at Soldier Field. The public on-sale and kick-off time will be announced next week. Tickets will be available for purchase by calling Ticketmaster at 312-559-1212 or at www.ticketmaster.com. Fire season ticket holders should use "Bonus Game A" for the friendly. For information, call 1-888-MLS-FIRE.
"American soccer fans around the country will eagerly look forward to this opportunity for MLS clubs to match up against two of the world's superpowers," said MLS Commissioner Don Garber. "With the Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game on Saturday, July 30 against English Premier League club Fulham, the last week of July will prove to be a historic one as MLS takes on the world."
Following the match between Chelsea FC and DC United, the World Series of Football culminates when A.C. Milan and Chelsea FC square off once again, this time at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey (kick-off time TBD).
"We have developed a great relationship with Chelsea FC and they are the class of the English Premier League. We believe they will become a dominant brand and team in the world of football going forward," said Leiweke. "A.C. Milan is already a world brand and made it to the Finals of the Champions League. Assisting these two teams in continuing to develop America is a real honor and we are looking forward to the World Series of Football."
In anticipation of their celebration of their 100th year, Chelsea FC won the 2005 English Premiership with 95 points on the campaign, posting a record of 28 wins, eight ties and only one loss during the regular season. The 2005 crown was Chelsea's first League title in 50 years, having last claimed the honors in 1955. Among the club's international stars are English national team regulars Joe Cole (M), John Terry (D), and Frank Lampard (M), Ireland's Damien Duff (M), Arjen Robben (F) of Holland, Iceland's Eidur Gudjohnsen (F), France's Claude Makelele (M) and Ivory Coast's Didier Drogba (F). Chelsea is owned by Russian businessman Roman Abramovich and is led by manager Jose Mourinho, who managed FC Porto to the Champion's League title prior to joining the English club in June 2004.
A six-time European Champion, A.C. Milan is owned by Fininvest, the holding company of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, and managed by Carlo Ancelotti. In 106 years of existence, the storied franchise has won 17 Serie A titles, most recently winning the 2004 League title. The Italian superpower finished second in the 2005 Champion's League, falling to Liverpool in penalty kicks after tying 3-3 during regulation this past May. Milan also has a star-studded international lineup featuring Italian national team standouts Paolo Maldini (D), Alessandero Nesta (D), Alessandro Costacurta (D), Filippo Inzaghi (F), and Andrea Pirlo (M), Brazil's Dida (GK), Kaká (F), and Cafu (D), Holland's Jaap Stam (D) and Clarence Seedorf (M), and the current holder of the Golden Ball as the 2004 European Most Valuable Player, Ukraine's Andriy Shevchenko.
The Chicago Fire and D.C. United, both owned by AEG, have combined to win five of Major League Soccer's first nine MLS Cup championships and four of the nine Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup titles since MLS started in 1996. Between the two, the teams have played in seven of the nine MLS Cups and have captured three Supporters' Shields, a trophy established by the fans to recognize the teams with the best overall record in regular season play.
The Fire has established itself as one of MLS's premier clubs despite its short history. The Fire has reached seven domestic Cup Finals (MLS Cup in 1998, 2000 and 2003 and U.S. Open Cup in 1998, 2000, 2003 and 2004), garnering the MLS Cup in its inaugural season in 1998 while capturing the U.S. Open Cup crown in 1998, 2000 and 2003.
Featuring long-time U.S. national team midfielder Chris Armas and goalkeeper Zach Thornton, Slovakia's Lubos Reiter, Honduras' Ivan Guerrero and Samuel Caballero, and Costa Rica's Andy Herron, the Fire has also participated in the CONCACAF Champions Cup tournament on three separate occasions in honor of winning a domestic title. In Champions Cup play, the Fire has posted a 6-4-1 all-time mark, reaching the semifinals in 2004.
The Fire has a successful track record against international opponents, posting a 10-5-1 record against clubs such as Germany's Hamburg (5-1 in 2001), Poland's Legia Warsaw (3-2 in 1999), England's Derby County (1-0 in 2001) and Mexico's Pumas (1-0 in 1998). Among other teams they have played against are Mexico's Toluca, Chivas de Guadalajara, and Morelia, as well as clubs from Costa Rica, Trinidad, and Guatemala.
United won the first ever MLS Cup by defeating the Los Angeles Galaxy 3-2 in the League's inaugural 1996 season. D.C. dominated the early years of MLS, making four consecutive appearances in the MLS Cup Championship game, also winning in 1997 and 1999. In 2004, United won their League-high fourth MLS Cup, defeating Kansas City 3-2 under the direction of former Poland international Peter Nowak. Led by the club's all-time leading scorer Jaime Moreno, United also features U.S. national team pool players Ben Olsen, Alecko Eskandarian, Nick Rimando and rising star Freddy Adu on the current squad.
Since 1997, D.C. United has traveled across the globe and battled 25 clubs from 13 countries. The list of clubs is an impressive one, including Germany's Bayer Leverkusen, Mexico's Club America, Toluca, and UNAM Pumas, Vasco da Gama of Brazil, and Argentina's Boca Juniors among others. D.C. United has also played five friendlies against teams from England and has yet to lose: 1-1 vs. Leeds United (May 16, 1997); 3-1 vs Newcastle United (July 22, 2000); 1-0 at Tottenham Hotspur (October 17, 2001); 1-0 vs. Tottenham Hotspur (May 14, 2003); and 1-1 vs. Blackburn Rovers (July 23, 2003 - DC won on penalty kicks).
In only its third year of play, D.C. pulled off what is arguably the greatest triumph ever for American club soccer in international competition. D.C. won the 1998 CONCACAF Champion's Cup as the best club in the region and went on to defeat South American Champion Vasco de Gama of Brazil to win the Intercontinental Cup.
2005 WORLD SERIES OF FOOTBALL
Sunday, July 24
AC Milan vs. Chelsea FC
Gillette Stadium, Foxboro, MA (TBD)
Wednesday, July 27
AC Milan vs. Chicago Fire
Soldier Field, Chicago, IL (TBD)
Thursday, July 28
Chelsea FC vs. D.C. United
FedEx Field, Washington D.C. at 7:00 p.m. CT on ESPN2
Sunday, July 31
AC Milan vs. Chelsea FC
Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, NJ (TBD)
