MLS Chicago Fire FC

Chicago Fire Weekly Update

Published on October 25, 2004 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Chicago Fire FC News Release


The Chicago Fire Juniors, the official youth soccer club of the Chicago Fire, will conduct tryouts for the club's U-15 through U-19 Boys teams this Sunday, Oct. 31 at Seven Gables Park in Wheaton, IL from 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. CT. The tryouts will be held on fields A, B, C and D at Seven Gables Park, which is located between Roosevelt Rd. and Butterfield Rd. in Wheaton. In addition, a supplemental tryout will be held on Sunday, Nov. 7 at Seven Gables Park from 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. CT. This date will also serve as a make-up date should weather cancel the primary tryouts on Oct. 31. For more information on the Boys senior teams tryouts, please call the Chicago Fire Juniors at 630-882-8428 or visit www.chicagofirejuniors.com.

Help Alexandre Boucicaut Assist Fellow Haitians Through Hurricane Relief Fund

Chicago Fire and Haitian National Team midfielder Alexandre Boucicaut is spearheading a relief effort for victims of the hurricanes that have destroyed much of Haiti over the past two months. In conjunction with Illinois Youth Soccer, the Boucicaut Hurricane Relief Fund will be collecting soccer equipment and monetary donations to rebuild the Caribbean nation's youth soccer programs and provide relief to the island's beleaguered residents. After donating one of his MLS paychecks to help out his friends and family back home, Boucicaut is hoping to raise greater awareness of the difficult conditions in the country after the natural disasters caused heavy damage and killed more than 1,600 people. Boucicaut will be traveling back to his native Haiti in December and will personally distribute the collected goods to youth soccer programs and the national youth soccer academy, while monetary donations will go to general relief efforts through non-profit organizations. The distribution event will provide a treat for Haitian children, as the 22-year-old soccer star enjoys the popularity of a national hero in the small Caribbean country. Addresses to send both soccer equipment and monetary donations can be found below. The deadline for the receipt of all donations has been set for Wednesday, Dec. 1.

New and gently used equipment can be shipped to:
Boucicaut Hurricane Relief Fund
c/o Illinois Youth Soccer
939 Industrial Drive
Bensenville, IL 60106

Monetary donations can be sent to:
Boucicaut Hurricane Relief Fund
c/o Illinois Youth Soccer
1655 S. Arlington Heights Rd.
Arlington Heights, IL 60005
(Checks can be made to Illinois Youth Soccer with "Boucicaut Hurricane Relief Fund" in the memo line.)

Fans Can Pre-Order Fire's New Puma "Chicago Flag" Third Kits Through Nov. 12

The Chicago Fire and PUMA® announced last Friday a new playing kit set to debut during the 2005 season that will supplement the Fire's existing home and away uniforms during select matches throughout the season. Taking into account the spirit and culture of Chicago and the dedication of its fans, PUMA has created the third uniform as homage to the Windy City with a jersey references the City of Chicago's municipal flag in both design and color palette. While retaining the signature Fire badge branding, the new jersey, like the flag, features white stripes across the chest and side panels that signify the north, south and west sides of the city. The baby blue color of the jersey symbolizes Lake Michigan, the Chicago River and the Great Canal. PUMA worked with Fire supporter Liam Murtaugh, Fire Equipment Manager Charles Raycroft and Fire GM Peter Wilt to design a uniform that uniquely reflects Chicago.

Scheduled for release in May 2005, the Fire will be holding a special pre-order sale that lasts from now through Friday, Nov. 12. During this time, fans can purchase the jersey for $70 with free shipping included by calling 1-888-MLS-FIRE. The Fire's third uniform will also be available at the following Chicago locations: Windy City Sports, Centrum Sport, Soccer Plus, North Shore Soccer, Soccer Locker, Inc. and Soccer Post. Fans can view the new Puma third kit design and order it online at www.chicago-fire.com.

Chicago Fire Juniors "Make a Difference" During Weekend Coat Drive

The Chicago Fire would like to congratulate members of the Chicago Fire Juniors youth development teams, who successfully engineered their second annual Coat Drive over the weekend as part of the national "Make a Difference Day." In all, members of the CFJ helped coordinate an effort that resulted in more than 400 coats and jackets being donated to local charities in addition to donating their time to help organize the efforts after the coats were gathered. The Fire would like to thank all the players, staff, coaches, families and friends who took part to make the Coat Drive such a success.

Henry the "Ring-Leader" of Fire's Four 2004 Postseason Award Winners

After putting together a sparkling first season as the Fire's first-choice goalkeeper, the Chicagoland media voted Henry Ring the 2004 Fire Honda Most Valuable Player last week. The 26-year-old Ring led a group of first-time award winners in the club's four major award categories, including Fire/Budweiser Scoring Champion Damani Ralph, Fire Defender of the Year Jim Curtin and U.S. Soccer Federation Humanitarian of the Year Jesse Marsch. Ring, who had backed up perennial starter Zach Thornton for the past three seasons, emerged from a preseason battle for the #1 spot and refused to relinquish it after posting seven shutouts and a respectable 1.43 GAA in his 28 starts in League play. Ralph picked up where he left off from his MLS Rookie of the Year campaign of 2003, easily outdistancing his teammates with 25 points on 11 goals and three assists this season to become just the third different player in team history to collect the Budweiser Scoring Championship, joining five-time champ Ante Razov and 2001 scoring title holder Eric Wynalda on the distinguished short list. Curtin proved to be sure and steady once again, as the 2004 MLS All-Star played every minute of the 2004 campaign while helping the Fire replace two-time defending MLS Defender of the Year Carlos Bocanegra on the backline. Marsch proved to be a fan favorite on and off the field in 2004, as the "Fire Original" earned the USSF Humanitarian of the Year honor for his work with such groups as Christopher House, the American Lung Association, the Gurnee branch of the PADS homeless shelter, Thresholds and the FireWorks for Kids Foundation - the charitable arm of the Chicago Fire, for who he has served on the Board of Directors since the spring of 2003.

Bridgeview Tabs Rossetti Group and Turner Construction to Plan, Build America's Soccer Home

The Village of Bridgeview -- the future home of the Chicago Fire -- has approved the hiring of Turner Construction Company and Rossetti to oversee the construction and architecture projects, respectively, for Bridgeview's $70 million, 20,000-seat, world-class soccer stadium that will house the Major League Soccer team permanently, with a targeted move-in date of Spring 2006. The stadium is scheduled to break ground later this fall. Chicago-based Turner Construction, which managed the highly acclaimed Soldier Field renovations, will handle the administration of the construction project and oversee all the trade contractors. Turner Chicago has played a major part in shaping skylines in and outside of Chicago, and is responsible for the construction of more than 100 buildings in Cook County, the collar counties and beyond. Based in Michigan, Rossetti is the leading sports architecture firm in America. Rossetti is responsible for designing America's most ambitious soccer stadium to date - The Home Depot Center in Carson, CA - and has also designed several other innovative sports venues, such as the Palace at Auburn Hills (NBA), Corel Center (NHL), Ford Field (NFL), and USTA Arthur Ashe Stadium.

FireWorks for Kids Foundation to Host Chicagoland Premiere of "Christmas with the Kranks" on Nov. 23

After its successful event surrounding the film "Mona Lisa Smile" last November, the FireWorks for Kids Foundation - the charitable arm of the Chicago Fire - announced last week that it will be hosting another Chicagoland movie premiere during the holidays, this time for the new Revolution Films movie "Christmas with the Kranks." The special event will take place on Nov. 23 at the Regal Cinemas in Lincolnshire, IL, and all proceeds from the movie premiere will go towards the FireWorks for Kids Foundation. The film, a new holiday-themed comedy based on John Grisham's novel Skipping Christmas, stars Tim Allen, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Dan Akroyd and is scheduled for a nationwide release on Nov. 24. To receive more information on the event, please call the FireWorks for Kids Foundation office at 312-705-7260 or 312-705-7218, or visit the Community section of www.Chicago-Fire.com in the upcoming weeks for more details.

Etc.

· The Fire family would like to send happy birthday wishes to M/F Nate Jaqua. The versatile, attacking player from Eugene, OR will turn 23 years old this Thursday, Oct. 26.

· The Fire itself will be celebrating a birthday of sorts, as this Saturday, Oct. 30 will mark the second anniversary of the team's groundbreaking partnership with its Mexican League sister team Monarcas Morelia. The Fire would like to thank its partners from Morelia for another successful year and looks forwards to the start of another trailblazing 12 months together.

· The Chicago Fire would like to congratulate the three finalists of the Xplosion Rockera 2004 - Zamanadoque Tarahum, Malafacha, and Nitzaye - and thank local bands Crather, Plural, Nañuco, and guest band Los Pecados de Maria for participating in the "Battle of the Bands" show held on Oct. 15 at La Justicia. The final show featuring the three finalists will be held in Chicago later this month at a venue to be announced. Xplosion Rockera 2004 is sponsored by Budweiser and Viva 93.5 y 103.1FM.

· A 2-1 victory at home last Wednesday over Jaguares pushed Monarcas Morelia's unbeaten streak to seven games, but nothing could last forever, as the "Monarchs" fell on the road by a similar score to Monterrey at Tecnologico Stadium last Saturday. The split was good enough to keep Morelia (4-5-3) in a third-place tie alongside U.A.G. (4-5-3), with both teams at 15 points, placing them within one favorable result of both Group One leader Pumas (6-6-0, 18 pts.) and second-place Atlante (5-6-1, 16 pts.) in the 2004 COMEX Apertura season. Morelia will return to action this Sunday, Oct. 31 when they host Necaxa (4-6-2, 14 pts.) at Morelos Stadium in Morelia at 4:00 p.m. CT.

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Major League Soccer Stories from October 25, 2004


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