October 30, 1998: The Great Chicago Fire... Soccer Team

October 30, 1998: The Chicago Fire beat the Columbus Crew, 2-1 at Soldier Field in Chicago, to win the U.S. Open Cup. Following their win in the MLS Cup Final 5 days earlier, this gives them the American version of the Premier League and the FA Cup: They have "done The Double."

It is only their 1st season.

Chicago Sparta, a team of Czech-Americans, had won the Open Cup in 1938 and 1940; the Chicago Vikings, a Scandinavian team, had won it in 1946; the Chicago Falcons, a Polish team, had won it in 1953; and the Chicago Sting had won the North American Soccer League Championship in 1981 and 1984 (the League's last season).

Despite Soldier Field being one of the venues for the 1994 World Cup, and the city's history as one of America's great multiethnic centers and one of its great sports cities, Chicago did not get a charter franchise in Major League Soccer. The team, officially named Chicago Fire Football Club (to match the "F.C." names of so many British teams) was founded on October 8, 1997, the Anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire in 1871. Their logo, or "badge," as British clubs would call it, matched that of the city's Fire Department.

They began regular-season play on March 21, 1998, beating the Miami Fusion, 2-0 at Lockhart Stadium in the Miami suburb of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Their 1st home game was also a 2-0 win over a Florida team that would be folded after the 2001 season, the Tampa Bay Mutiny. A crowd of 36,444 attended at Soldier Field.

They lost their next 5 games, but won their next 11. Then they lost their next 5, but won their next 4 of their next 5, before losing their regular-season finale.

The U.S. Open Cup works the same way the FA Cup works in England: It runs concurrent with the League season. As an MLS team, the Fire got a bye into the 3rd Round, and ended up playing another area team, the Chicago Stingers, sort-of named for the former NASL team. They were based in the United Soccer League (USL), then the 2nd tier of U.S. soccer, and hosted the July 6 game in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The Fire didn't have to try too hard to win, and did so, 3-1.

On July 22, the played the San Jose Clash in the Quarterfinals, on neutral ground, at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. It ended in a 1-1 draw, but the Fire advanced on penalties, 4-3. The Semifinal would be against the Dallas Burn (the team now known as FC Dallas), but it wouldn't be in Dallas or Chicago. Instead, this one was also at neutral ground, at Zephyr Field in Metairie, Louisiana, home of the minor-league baseball team representing New Orleans. The Fire won, 3-2, and advanced to the Final, which they would host.

In the MLS Cup Playoffs, they needed a shootout to beat the Denver-area team, the Colorado Rapids, at home, 3-2 after a 1-1 draw on October 1; then beat them 1-0 away on October 5. In the Western Conference Finals, they beat the Los Angeles Galaxy, 1-0 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena on October 10; but, on October 16, at Soldier Field, again, they could only manage a 1-1 draw, before winning 2-1 in a shootout.

That set up the MLS Cup Final on October 25, on neutral ground, again at the Rose Bowl, against D.C. United, the Washington-based team that had won the 1st 2 league titles, including "The Double" in 1996. Attendance was listed at 51,350, but that left the old bowl nearly half-empty.

Despite D.C. having such talents as John Harkes, Jeff Agoos, Eddie Pope, Roy Lassiter, Marco Etcheverry and Jamie Moreno, it was the Fire who emerged victorious. Polish striker Jerzy Podbrożny scored in the 29th minute. Colombian midfielder Diego Gutiérrez added another just before the half. Another Pole, Chicago's Captain Piotr Nowak, was named Man of the Match, much to the delight of the large Polish rooting section among the Fire's ultra support, known as Section 8.

Zach Thornton kept a clean sheet in goal. Manager Bob Bradley could also count among his starting lineup Jesse Marsch, later to manage the New York Red Bulls to 2 Supporters' Shields.

Five days later, at home at Soldier Field, the Fire faced the Columbus Crew. The Fire tended to wear white, with red and blue trim, similar to the City flag, but, on this occasion, wore white with black trim. By a weird coincidence, the Crew wore black and gold, which, given the "insect" theme, were the usual colors of the Fire's NASL predecessors, the Chicago Sting.

A much smaller crowd of 18,615 saw the Fire awarded a penalty just before halftime, converted by Podbrożny. Stern John -- apparently, the Trinidadian forward's full birth name -- scored for the Crew in the 53rd minute.

The game went to extra time, and, in the 99th minute -- no "Golden Goal" in this tournament -- Fotios "Frank" Klopas, a Greek forward who came on at the start of extra time, scored the goal that gave the Fire The Double.

The Fire have since won the Open Cup again in 2000, 2003 and 2006, losing the Final in 2004 and 2011; and the Supporters' Shield, the MLS regular-season title, in 2003. But they have never again won the MLS Cup, losing the Final in 2000 for a just-missed-Double and 2003 for a runner-up-Double.

*

October 30, 1998 was a Friday. Baseball season had ended 9 days earlier, when the New York Yankees completed a 4-game World Series sweep over the San Diego Padres. The NBA's team owners had locked the players out, and so the season started late. There were 7 games in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers beat the Carolina Hurricanes, 1-0 at Madison Square Garden.

* The Buffalo Sabres beat their arch-rivals, the Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-1 at the Marine Midland Arena (now the KeyBank Center) in Buffalo.

* The Florida Panthers beat the Chicago Blackhawks, 7-3 at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Dallas Stars and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim played to a tie, 3-3 at the Reunion Arena in Dallas.

* The Washington Capitals and the Calgary Flames played to a tie, 0-0 at the Saddledome in Calgary.

* The Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Los Angeles Kings, 3-0 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

* And the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Vancouver Canucks played to a tie, 2-2 at General Motors Place (now the Rogers Arena) in Vancouver.

The NFL and the NCAA had no football games scheduled. But in New Jersey high school football, my Alma Mater, East Brunswick, beat South Brunswick, 36-10 at Mike Elko Stadium in South Brunswick.

October 27, 2013: The New York Red Bulls Finally Win a Trophy

October 27, 2013: The New York Red Bulls win a trophy. This might not seem like a big deal, but it had never happened before.

The franchise began in 1996, the inaugural season of Major League Soccer, as the New York/New Jersey MetroStars, playing at Giants Stadium at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, Bergen County, New Jersey.

In 2006, they were bought out by the Austrian soft drink company Red Bull, and were rebranded as Red Bull New York, or "the New York Red Bulls." Sometimes with the abbreviation NYRB, sometimes as RBNY. But the team's original fans continued to call them "Metro," and still do. Some still wear old MetroStars jerseys to games. 

There are several trophies available to MLS teams. There is the Supporters' Shield, given to the team that finishes 1st overall in the league in the regular season. There is the MLS Cup, given to the winner of the league's Playoffs. There is the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, a tournament that is run concurrently with the league season. In effect, it is America's equivalent to England's FA Cup.

And there is the CONCACAF Champions League, for which 4 teams from the United States qualify: The MLS Cup winner, the Supporters' Shield winner, the winner of the regular season title in the other Conference, and the U.S. Open Cup winner. If one of the Conference Champions is one of MLS' Canadian teams -- FC Montreal, Toronto FC or the Vancouver Whitecaps -- and that team also wins the Canadian Champions' Cup (Canada's version of the FA Cup), then the 2nd-place team gets the 4th U.S. berth.

Despite having the advantages that come with playing in the New York market, they were never an especially good team. In 2000, the MetroStars won the Eastern Conference. But unless the Conference winner is the overall 1st place team, it does not receive a trophy. And they were 3rd overall. The team reached the MLS Cup Final in 2008, losing to the Columbus Crew. It reached the Semifinals in 2000. It reached the U.S. Open Cup Final in 2003, losing to the Chicago Fire. It reached the Semifinals in 1997, 1998 and 2000.

In 2010, their 1st season playing at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, Hudson County, New Jersey, they signed forward Thierry Henry, who had been the best player in the world while with North London team Arsenal. Even that boost wasn't enough: Although they finished 1st in the Eastern Conference, they were only 3rd overall in the league. They got to the Quarterfinal of the MLS Cup in 2010, and again in 2011, and again in 2012.

Finally, in 2013, it looked like they might have put it all together. With Luis Robles in goal; a back four of Connor Lade, Jamison Olave, Markus Holgersson and Heath Pearce; a midfield of Eric Alexander, Tim Cahill, Dax McCarty and Jonny Steele; and Thierry Henry and Bradley Wright-Phillips leading the line, the Red Bulls won 17 games, drew 8 and lost 9, to collect a team record 59 points.

On the season's last day, October 27, they beat the Chicago Fire, 5-2 at Red Bull Arena. This clinched a finish of 1st overall. They had won the Supporters' Shield. At last, they had won a trophy.

But they blew it in the 1st round of the MLS Cup Playoffs. In the away leg, against the Houston Dynamo, they had a 2-0 lead, but allowed the game to be tied. Olave was sent off with a dubious straight red card, and the Dynamo tied the game in stoppage time. In the home leg, Metro took a 1-0 lead, only to be tied. Unfortunately, MLS doesn't have the away goals rule, so, instead of Metro advancing that way, extra time was necessary, and Houston won 4-3 on aggregate.

The Red Bulls have won the Supporters' Shield again in 2015 and 2018. But they have never won the MLS Cup. Of the 10 original teams from 1996, only the Red Bulls and the New England Revolution are both still in business and have yet to win an MLS Cup. The 1st 26 MLS Cups have been won by 14 different teams -- including the last one, won by New York City FC, in only their 7th season. That was the most humiliating moment in MetroStars/Red Bulls history, and they didn't even play that day.

For comparison's sake: It only took the New York Rangers 2 seasons to win their 1st Stanley Cup, the New York Islanders 8, and the New Jersey Devils 13; the team now known as the Brooklyn Nets needed 7 seasons to win their 1st ABA Championship, and the New York Knicks 24 to win their 1st NBA Championship; the New York Giants first won their League in their 3rd season, the New York Jets theirs in their 9th; the New York Mets won their 1st World Series in their 8th season, the New York Yankees in their 21st.

The WNBA's New York Liberty have now played 25 seasons without a championship, having gone 0-4 in Finals, so that's comparable to what the MetroStars/Red Bulls have done.

(UPDATE: In 2024, the Liberty and the Red Bulls each made their leagues' Finals. The Liberty won. The Red Bulls lost.)

*

October 27, 2013 was a Sunday. There were 4 other games played in MLS that day:

* The Houston Dynamo beat DC United, 2-1 at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in Washington.

* The New England Revolution beat the Columbus Crew, 1-0 at Columbus Crew Stadium in, well, Columbus.

* The Seattle Sounders and Los Angeles Galaxy played to a 1-1 draw at what's now Lumen Field in Seattle.

* And the Vancouver Whitecaps beat the Colorado Rapids, 3-0 at BC Place in Vancouver.

Game 4 of the World Series was played that day, at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. The Boston Red Sox found a way, whatever that was, to beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 4-2. Jonny Gomes hit a home run. Red Sox closer Koji Uehara picked Kolten Wong off 1st base for the final out, the 1st time a postseason game had ever ended with a pickoff. I have a separate entry for this event. The Sox tied the Series at 2-2, and won it 3 days later. *

Being a Sunday, there was NFL action:

* The New York Giants beat the Philadelphia Eagles, 15-7 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.

* The New York Jets lost to the Cincinnati Bengals, 49-9 at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati.

* The New England Patriots beat the Miami Dolphins, 27-17 at Gillette Stadium in the Boston suburb of Foxborough, Massachusetts.

* The San Francisco 49ers beat the Jacksonville Jaguars, 42-10 at what's now EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville.

* The New Orleans Saints beat the Buffalo Bills, 35-17 at the Superdome in New Orleans.

* The Detroit Lions beat the Dallas Cowboys, 31-30 at Ford Field in Detroit.

* The Green Bay Packers beat the Minnesota Vikings, 44-31 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Rookie Cordarelle Patterson of the Vikings returns the opening kickoff 109 yards for a touchdown, tying an unbreakable NFL record. But that would be the highlight for his team.

* The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Cleveland Browns, 23-17 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kanas City.

* The Denver Broncos beat the Washington Redskins, 45-21 at what's now Empower Field in Denver.

* The Arizona Cardinals beat the Atlanta Falcons, 27-13 at what's now State Farm Stadium in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona.

* And the Oakland Raiders beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 21-18 at the O.co Coliseum (as the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum was then known).

The preceding Thursday, the Carolina Panthers had beaten the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 31-13 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. And the next day, on Monday Night Football, the Seattle Seahawks beat the St. Louis Rams, 14-9 at what's now Lumen Field in Seattle.

And the Baltimore Ravens, the Chicago Bears, the Houston Texans, the Indianapolis Colts, the San Diego Chargers and the Tennessee Titans had a bye.

The NBA season didn't start for another 2 days. There were 5 games played in the NHL:

* The San Jose Sharks beat the Ottawa Senators, 5-2 at the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa.

* The Tampa Bay Lightning beat their arch-rivals, the Florida Panthers, 4-3 at the BB&T Center (now the Amerant Bank Arena) in the Miami suburb of Sunrise, Florida.

* The Anaheim Ducks beat the Columbus Blue Jackets, 4-3 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus.

* The Colorado Avalanche beat the Winnipeg Jets, 3-2 at the Pepsi Center (now the Ball Arena) in Denver.

* And the Los Angeles Kings beat the Edmonton Oilers, 2-1 in a shootout, at the Staples Center (now the Crypto.com Arena) in Los Angeles.