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June 17, 2013 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Chicago Fire FC News Release


The Chicago Fire (3-7-3, 12 points) welcome the Colorado Rapids (5-5-5, 20 points) to Toyota Park on Wednesday, June 19 at 7:30 p.m. CT (My50/La Ley 107.9). This is the final match of a four-game homestand for the Men in Red to start the month of June. With the quick turnaround, the Fire then head to the Buckeye State to take on the Columbus Crew (5-5-5, 20 points) at Crew Stadium on Saturday, June 22 at 7:00 p.m. CT (My50/La Ley 107.9).

Wednesday's match marks the only regular season meeting between the Fire and Rapids this season. Second half goals from Omar Cummings and Kamani Hill proved to be too much as the Fire fell 2-0 at Dick's Sporting Goods Park on April 1, 2012.

Saturday's match in Columbus will be the third of four meetings between the Fire and Crew across all competition this season. Jeff Larentowicz's 83rd minute header gave the Men in Red the 1-0 victory against the Crew on April 20 at Toyota Park. The Fire also hosted the Crew in the fourth round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup on June 13. Konrad Warzycha opened scoring for the visitors but goals from Mike Magee and Patrick Nyarko propelled the Men in Red to the quarterfinal stage. The Fire will again visit Columbus on Saturday, September 21 (My50/La Ley 107.9) at 6:30 p.m. CT to close out the 2013 series.

Currently in sixth place in the Western Conference, the Rapids enter the match after falling 2-1 to the San Jose Earthquakes Saturday evening. The Rapids will be without the services of the team's leading scorer Atiba Harris when they visit Toyota Park. Harris will be serving a one-game suspension for a red card he received in the 18th minute of the match against the Earthquakes.

Sitting in seventh place in the Eastern Conference, the Crew enter the match after defeating Eastern Conference leaders Montreal Impact 2-0 Saturday evening at Crew Stadium.

CHICAGO FIRE TRAINING SCHEDULE: June 18 - June 24

Tuesday, June 18 Training 10:00 a.m.*^

Wednesday, June 19 Chicago Fire vs. Colorado Rapids - Toyota Park - 7:30 p.m. CT (My50/La Ley 107.9)

Thursday, June 20 Training 11:00 a.m.*^

Friday, June 21 Travel to Columbus

Training in Columbus TBA

Saturday, June 22 Chicago Fire vs. Columbus Crew - Crew Stadium - 7:00 p.m. CT (My50/La Ley 107.9)

Sunday, June 23 Return to Chicago

Monday, June 24 Training 10:00 a.m.*^

*Training will take place on the Toyota Park Practice Field unless otherwise noted

^Times are approximate and subject to change.

CHICAGO FIRE vs. Colorado Rapids

- The Fire hold a 17-12-8 all-time regular season record against the Colorado Rapids, including a dominating 14-3-2 record in matches played at home.

- The Fire have never lost to the Rapids at Toyota Park with a 4-0-2 record. The last time the Fire lost to the Rapids at home was a 3-0 loss on Aug. 14, 2004 at Soldier Field.

- The Fire are 3-3-1 at Toyota Park this season.

- Three current Fire players spent time with the Rapids. Forward Quincy Amarikwa, midfielder Jeff Larentowicz and defender Wells Thompson played for the Rapids from 2010-2012, leading the team to their first MLS Cup championship in 2010.

- Mike Magee's strike in the 29th minute of the Fire's fourth round Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup clash with the Columbus Crew on June 13 was his fourth goal in his first four consecutive games for the Fire.

CHICAGO FIRE vs. Columbus Crew

- The Fire hold a 23-12-13 all-time regular season record against the Columbus Crew. The Fire hold a slight advantage on the road, with a 9-7-6 record in matches played in Columbus.

- Fire midfielder Dilly Duka began his professional career with the Columbus Crew. After a standout collegiate career at Rutgers University, the Montville, N.J. product was selected in the first round (eight overall) of the 2010 MLS SuperDraft by the Crew. In three seasons, Duka scored two goals and tallied five assists in 45 matches. The Men in Red acquired Duka and the right of first refusal to midfielder Robbie Rogers in exchange for Dominic Oduro Feb. 4, 2013.

- Current Crew forward Dominic Oduro spent the 2011 and 2012 seasons as a member of the Men in Red. In 66 regular season appearances, the Ghanaian striker scored 18 goals and tallied five assists.

- Crew defender Eric Gehrig and midfielder Ethan Finlay are products of the Chicago Fire PDL system.

- Two Fire players hail from the Buckeye state. Cincinnati, Ohio product Austin Berry was named 1st Team All State and Division III Southwest Ohio Player of the Year while playing all four seasons before graduating from Summit Country Day. Born in Kettering, Ohio, Fire forward Chris Rolfe matriculated to nearby University of Dayton where he concluded his collegiate career as sixth all-time at UD in goals with 31, and set UD's single-season and career assist records with 10 in 2004 and 25 in his collegiate career.

- The Crew are the team the Rolfe has score against the most, with eight of his 45 regular season goals coming against the Crew.

CHICAGO FIRE TO PARTICIPATE IN U.S. SOCCER VIEWING PARTY IN GRANT PARK JUNE 18

Fire head coach Frank Klopas, captain Logan Pause and 2012 Chicago Fire MVP and Golden Boot winner Chris Rolfe will participate in U.S. Soccer's free viewing party in Grant Park for the United States vs. Honduras World Cup Qualifier on Tuesday, June 18. Pre-match activities will begin at 4:00 p.m. CT and the match will begin at 8:00 p.m. CT.

The crucial World Cup Qualifier will be shown on a 19' X 33' GoVision high-definition mobile giant screen at the Petrillo Bandshell in Grant Park between Jackson Drive and Monroe Street.

The United States currently sit atop the standings in the final round of CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying.

SEVEN FIRE PLAYERS NAMED TO THE 2013 AT&T MLS ALL-STAR GAME BALLOT

Major League Soccer announced the seven Chicago Fire players that have been chosen for the fan ballot for the 2013 AT&T MLS All-Star game against Serie A side AS Roma on July 31 at Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kan. Fan voting is now open on www.MLSsoccer.com and via text message.

The Men in Red are represented on the fan ballot by goalkeeper Sean Johnson, defenders Jalil Anibaba and Austin Berry, midfielders Jeff Larentowicz, Mike Magee and Patrick Nyarko, and forward Chris Rolfe.

Larentowicz is the only Fire player on this year's ballot with previous All-Star game experience, having represented the Rapids in 2010 when the MLS All-Stars hosted Manchester United at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas. Larentowicz played the second half as the MLS All-Stars fell 5-2 in front of a record crowd of 70,728 fans.

A panel of media members nominated a total of 115 players to the fan ballot. Fans may vote online HERE. Fans can also vote by sending a player's last name via text message to 22442. Twitter voting will occur June 20-21.

TICKETS FOR THE CHICAGO FIRE VS. ORLANDO CITY SC LAMAR HUNT U.S. OPEN CUP QUARTERFINAL MATCH NOW ON SALE

Tickets for the Chicago Fire vs. Orlando City SC Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinal match at Toyota Park on Wednesday, June 26 at 7:30 p.m. CT are now on sale.

Advance tickets for the match are available by calling 888-MLS-Fire, by visiting www.Chicago-Fire.com or Ticketmaster. The Open Cup match will serve as Bonus Game 3 in the Fire Season Ticket and Ten Game packages.

The Fire advanced to the quarterfinals of the storied tournament with a 2-1 victory over the Columbus Crew Thursday afternoon at Toyota Park. Goals from Mike Magee and Patrick Nyarko led the Men in Red to their 32nd all-time victory in the 100-year-old tournament.

USL-PRO side Orlando City SC advanced after a 1-0 victory over defending champions Sporting Kansas City on Wednesday evening at Sporting Park.

This match will cap off a busy month for the Men in Red, who will play a total of six matches in June. The Fire return to action when they host the Colorado Rapids at Toyota Park on Wednesday, June 19 at 7:30 p.m. CT (My50/La Ley 107.9 FM). Tickets for the match are available by calling 888-MLS-FIRE or by visiting www.Chicago-Fire.com

CHICAGO FIRE U-18 AND U-16 ACADEMY TEAMS LEARN OPPONENTS FOR USSDA PLAYOFFS

The Chicago Fire's U-18 and U-16 Academy teams learned their opponents for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Playoffs and Showcase at FC Dallas Park in Frisco, Texas from June 24-28.

The U-18s were drawn into Group 4 with fellow MLS side Real Salt Lake Academy, Florida-based Weston FC and the Dallas Texans.

The U-16s were drawn into Group 3 with MLS side Colorado Rapids Academy, New Jersey-based PDA Soccer Club and New England Revolution affiliate Revolution Empire Soccer Club.

In four USSDA seasons, of the 80 clubs in the Academy league (17 MLS clubs, 63 non-MLS clubs), the Fire are one of only four sides to have both the U-18 and U-16 teams qualify for the playoffs every season. The Fire and FC Dallas are the only MLS sides with this distinction, joining CASL (Raleigh, N.C.) and Concorde Fire (Atlanta, Ga.)

SUPPLEMENTAL TRYOUTS FOR CHICAGO FIRE JUNIORS CITY TO TAKE PLACE TUESDAY, JUNE 18

The newly formed Chicago Fire Juniors City will hold supplemental tryouts for boys and girls in the U-8 to U-18 age groups. Tryouts will take place at Montrose West Synthetic Field (601 W. Montrose Ave.) on Tuesday, June 18 from 4:30 - 6:30 p.m. CT.

Chicago Fire Juniors City was formed as a result of a strategic partnership with the Fire and Chicago-based FC Drive. The Chicago Fire Juniors City is one of ten clubs in the Chicago Fire Juniors family, the fifth in the Chicagoland, first in the downtown area, and the fourth in the state of Illinois. Since 2008, the Fire's youth development program has grown from 400 participants to more than 10,000 across seven states.

Founded as a not-for-profit organization to teach a higher level of play and to inspire competitive excellence in youth soccer players, FC Drive began play in September 2007 under the direction of current Fire head coach Frank Klopas. Now in its eighth season, FC Drive has more than 400 players on 32 teams.

TICKETS FOR THE CHICAGO FIRE VS. CLUB AMERICA MATCH PRESENTED BY TRUECAR NOW ON SALE

Tickets for the Chicago Fire vs. Club América match Presented by TrueCar at Toyota Park on Wednesday, July 10 are now on sale.

Advance tickets for the match are available by calling 888-MLS-Fire, by visiting www.Chicago-Fire.com or Ticketmaster. The international friendly will serve as Bonus Game 1 in the Fire Season Ticket and Ten Game packages. The first 5,000 fans in the gates will receive a TrueCar car magnet.

Las Águilas have captured eleven titles in Mexico's Primera División and have also experience success in the CONCACAF region as well, tied with Cruz Azul as the most successful club in the region with five titles to their credit. América were also crowned champions of the 2008 InterLiga tournament, a competition between Mexican clubs to determine qualifying spots for the Copa Libertadores.

Recently crowned the Liga MX Clasura champions, América's roster currently boasts Mexican international defender Efraín Juárez and Ecuadorian striker Christian Benitez. Juárez, a 25-year-old right back has been capped 39 times for El Tri, and started three matches in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. América also feature currently Liga MX goal scoring leader, Ecuadorian striker Christian Benitez.

WEEKLY RADIO SHOW JUEGA CON FIRE ON LA LEY 107.9 FM

La Ley 107.9 FM will broadcast the weekly show, "Juega Con Fire" every Sunday at 10:00 a.m. CT. Hosted by veteran Spanish language play-by-play broadcaster Oscar Guzman and long-time Chicago reporter and FutbolMLS.com correspondent Raquel Ortiz, the new weekly show will focus on the beautiful game in Chicago, MLS and abroad.

Fans can tune-in for a chance to win tickets and other prizes while listening to all things soccer.

TICKETS TO SELECT CHICAGO FIRE MATCHES AVAILABLE ON GROUPON

Tickets for the July 3 Chicago Fire vs. San Jose Earthquakes match and the Aug. 23 Chicago Fire vs. Sporting Kansas City match are now available through Groupon. Fire fans can choose from the following options:

Chicago Fire vs. San Jose Earthquakes on July 3 at Toyota Park

- $19 ($47.10 value) for one Corner Kick ticket, including a hot dog and soda

- $25 ($59.60 value) for one Premier ticket, including a hot dog and soda

Chicago Fire vs. Sporting Kansas City on Aug. 2 at Toyota Park

- $19 ($47.10 value) for one Corner Kick ticket, including bus transportation to Toyota Park from one of the following pick-up locations: Atlantic Bar and Grill, AJ Hudson's, Cleos, Fado, or Galway Arms

- $25 ($59.60 value) for one Premier ticket, including bus transportation to Toyota Park from one of the following pick-up locations: Atlantic Bar and Grill, AJ Hudson's, Cleos, Fado, or Galway Arms

Additional information on the Groupon deals can be found here.

CHICAGO FIRE SEASON AND INDIVIDUAL TICKETS ON SALE

Individual single game tickets for the club's 16th MLS season at Toyota Park are now on sale.

One of the most affordable live events in the Chicagoland area, single game ticket prices start as low as $20 and can be purchased via Ticketmaster.

Season Tickets are also available by calling 1-888-MLS-FIRE, via Ticketmaster or by heading to the club's official website at www.Chicago-Fire.com.

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