Soldier Field isn’t the answer, but it’s certainly closer to the answer than Bridgeview. Let’s see how things look when they (hopefully) successfully relaunch the brand in the 2022 season with new players and the new logo.
The one problem is that the guy that was in charge making ng all of the decisions was placing blame on failure on everything but himself. The culture of the team is the problem so I'll fire everyone even the kit man. The brand is the problem so I'll rebrand the team with something that has no connection to the city or history of the team. The supporters are the problem so I'll ban one of the most passionate groups and call those who criticize me wallowers. The location is the problem so I'll move the team to where we'll be treated as maybe the second most important tenant. Not once did he say maybe I made mistakes with the roster and not creating a winning team. Not once did he say maybe I made a mistake with this player or that player. Everything else was the problem.
I have no problem with a hybrid system at all. During the summer Soldier Field is better. During the fall Bridgeview is better. Why not play to those strengths?
You don't like the pointy ball lines and the Bears branding everywhere? The first few years of the Fire at Soldier Field, it did not bother me that much. When the Fire returned to Soldier Field in 2003 it started to annoy me more. Now, it is an eye sore.
Oh, wait, on second thought, I might be talking about the Chicago Fire soccer team as much as the pointy ball lines!
What the ******** would they know? But in all seriousness, it was, for a time, the best surface in the league and could be again. The Village stopped paying to have a head groundskeeper and Alligator Arms Andy had the option to pay to keep the field up to date and try to chargeback the Village because of a breach of contract, OR just take a credit on rent. Good ol’ Alligator Arms went the cheapo route and the field degraded. Enter the Mansueto era and I’m sure the field could be maintained properly. Hell, I don’t believe Soldier Field’s grass is even heated. Bridgeview at least has that so the growing season lasts much longer allowing the field to heal late into the season. The players you get anecdotes from probably never set foot on the field while it was actively being maintained by a professional.
Yes, and one of my former volunteer's husband was the head grounds keeper at Toyota Park. He was very conscientious about his job.
...and oversoil fatasses tearing up the grass (No, Sherjill MacDonald has not been signed by the Fire again)
Yeah... people have rosy memories about how bad that place looked at times. Not sure if it was a crappy drainage system, but that place some summers had so many random dead spots you'd think the team had let Sparky relieve himself on the field during the week.
For awhile, Bridgeview had one of the best fields in the league. Then, the city damn near went bankrupt and let all the field related staff go. Hauptman refused to hold them to task or pay for it himself and suddenly, even the Red Stars opponents were calling out Toyota Park (and we've seen the field injustices the USL/NWSL has had to suffer through).
They're laying new sod for the field right now. Maybe it was the price for the Fire to play there, or a condition.