Chicago Fire 1998 soccer season
The 1998 Chicago Fire season was the Chicago Fire Soccer Club 's inaugural season of existence, and their first season in Major League Soccer , the top tier of American soccer .
The Chicago Fire enjoyed one of the strongest debuts for an expansion club in the history of American soccer and of the North American sports leagues in general. The Fire won the double by winning both MLS Cup '98 and the 1998 U.S. Open Cup Final , both in a five-day timespan. It was the first time that an expansion franchise in any of the major American sports leagues won the league championship. The next time an expansion franchise would reach the championship of their respective sports league would be 20 years later, when the first-year Vegas Golden Knights NHL ice hockey team reached the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals .
Background
The last professional soccer club to play in the Chicago area was the Chicago Sting , who played in the original NASL from 1974 to 1983, and then in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1984 to 1988. The Sting won two Soccer Bowl championships: in 1981 and again in 1984 .
The Chicago Fire were one of two new MLS expansion teams to join MLS in 1998, and the first two ever expansion teams in league history, the other team being the now-defunct Miami Fusion . The Fire were founded on October 8, 1997,[ 1] Great Chicago Fire . The club was named after the event. The club focused on recruiting players of various descent to reflect on the diversity of the region. The team brought in Polish players Piotr Nowak , Jerzy Podbrożny , and Roman Kosecki ; the Mexican Jorge Campos ; and the Czech Luboš Kubík .
Club
Roster
No.
Name
Nationality
Position
Date of Birth (Age)[A ]
Previous Club
Goalkeepers
Jorge Campos
GK
(1966-10-15 ) October 15, 1966 (aged 32)
Cruz Azul
Scott Coufal
GK
(1974-09-27 ) September 27, 1974 (aged 24)
Kevin Rueda
GK
(1969-03-16 ) March 16, 1969 (aged 29)
Zach Thornton
GK
(1973-10-10 ) October 10, 1973 (aged 25)
David Winner
GK
(1971-04-23 ) April 23, 1971 (aged 27)
Defenders
Diego Gutiérrez
DF
(1972-11-03 ) November 3, 1972 (aged 25)
Ritchie Kotschau
DF
(1975-11-22 ) November 22, 1975 (aged 22)
Luboš Kubík
CB
(1964-01-20 ) January 20, 1964 (aged 34)
Francis Okaroh
CB
(1963-08-25 ) August 25, 1963 (aged 35)
Mike Richardson
DF
(1968-10-08 ) October 8, 1968 (aged 30)
Tom Soehn
DF
(1966-04-15 ) April 15, 1966 (aged 32)
Brian Bates
DF
(1972-08-16 ) August 16, 1972 (aged 26)
Colorado Rapids
C. J. Brown
CB
(1975-06-15 ) June 15, 1975 (aged 23)
San Francisco Bay Seals
Andrew Lewis
DF
(1974-07-10 ) July 10, 1974 (aged 24)
Joe Carver
DF
(1971-06-11 ) June 11, 1971 (aged 27)
Midfielders
Chris Armas
MF
(1972-08-22 ) August 22, 1972 (aged 26)
LA Galaxy
Zak Ibsen
MF
(1972-06-02 ) June 2, 1972 (aged 26)
Josh Keller
MF
(1975-02-16 ) February 16, 1975 (aged 23)
Manny Lagos
MF
(1971-06-11 ) June 11, 1971 (aged 27)
Jesse Marsch
MF
(1973-11-08 ) November 8, 1973 (aged 24)
Peter Nowak
MF
(1964-07-05 ) July 5, 1964 (aged 34)
Jorge Salcedo
MF
(1972-09-27 ) September 27, 1972 (aged 26)
Forwards
Frank Klopas
FW
(1966-09-01 ) September 1, 1966 (aged 32)
Roman Kosecki
FW
(1966-02-15 ) February 15, 1966 (aged 32)
Tony Kuhn
FW
(1975-12-15 ) December 15, 1975 (aged 22)
Jerzy Podbrożny
FW
(1966-12-17 ) December 17, 1966 (aged 31)
Ante Razov
FW
(1974-03-02 ) March 2, 1974 (aged 24)
Josh Wolff
FW
(1977-02-25 ) February 25, 1977 (aged 21)
^ Player's age during the 1998 season.
Team management
Position
Staff
General Manager
Peter Wilt
Head Coach
Bob Bradley
Assistant Coach
Assistant Coach
Goalkeeper Coach
Competitive
Major League Soccer
Standings
Western Conference
Overall table
Source:
MLS Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) head-to-head record; 3) goal difference; 4) number of goals scored
(C) Champions;
(S) Supporters' Shield
Results by round
Matchday 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 Stadium A H A A H A H A H H A H H A H H H A A A A A H H A A H A H H H A Result W W L L L L L W W W SO W W W W W W W L L L L L W W W W L W W W L
Source:
Chicago-Fire.com A = Away;
H = Home;
W = Win;
L = Loss;
SO = Shootout Win
Match reports
Tampa Bay Mutiny v Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire v Colorado Rapids
Los Angeles Galaxy v Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire v San Jose Clash
Chicago Fire v Kansas City Wizards
Chicago Fire v Dallas Burn
Dallas Burn v Chicago Fire
Columbus Crew v Chicago Fire
D.C. United v Chicago Fire
MetroStars v Chicago Fire
San Jose Clash v Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire v Los Angeles Galaxy
Chicago Fire v San Jose Clash
Colorado Rapids v Chicago Fire
Kansas City Wizards v Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire v Miami Fusion
Dallas Burn v Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire v Colorado Rapids
Chicago Fire v Kansas City Wizards
Chicago Fire v New England Revolution
Los Angeles Galaxy v Chicago Fire
MLS Cup Playoffs
Western Conference semifinals
Chicago Fire v Colorado Rapids
Colorado Rapids v Chicago Fire
Western Conference finals
Los Angeles Galaxy v Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire v Los Angeles Galaxy
MLS Cup
Chicago Fire v D.C. United
U.S. Open Cup
Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire
Chicago Fire
Statistics
Appearances and Goalscorers
Goalscorers
Rank
Pos.
No.
Player
MLS
MLS Cup
US Open Cup
Total
Transfers
Transfers in
No.
Pos.
Player
From
Fee
Date
Source
Transfers out
No.
Pos.
Player
To
Fee
Date
Source
Loan in
No.
Pos.
Player
Loaned from
Start
End
Source
Loan out
No.
Pos.
Player
Loaned to
Start
End
Source
Awards
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(June 2018 )
See also
References
External links
Club Stadiums Affiliated clubs Culture Key personnel
Major honors (6)
MLS Cup (1) Supporters' Shield (1) U.S. Open Cup (4)
Major League Soccer
Seasons (24)
International
Club competitions National teams
Team seasons
MLS A-League
Atlanta Ruckus
Albuquerque Geckos
California Jaguars
Charleston Battery
Cincinnati Riverhawks
Connecticut Wolves
El Paso Patriots
Jacksonville Cyclones
Hampton Roads Mariners
Hershey Wildcats
Long Island Rough Riders
Milwaukee Rampage
Minnesota Thunder
Montreal Impact
MLS Project 40
Nashville Metros
New Orleans Storm
Orange County Zodiac
Raleigh Flyers
Richmond Kickers
Rochester Rhinos
San Diego Flash
San Francisco Bay Seals
Seattle Sounders
Staten Island Vipers
Toronto Lynx
Vancouver 86ers
Worchester Wildfire Pro League
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