In the Q&A v 3.0 thread, Peter mentioned that there is some interest in having the Fire host an International Tournament with the Fire and 3 other teams. If something like this could be arranged, who would you, as Fire fans, like to see in the tournament? I have two right off the bat -- Fulham and PSV Eindhoven. Anyone have a third suggestion?
I have a feeling it will be Chicago, Morelia, and whomever they can manage to draw with limited money. Chicago, Morelia, Fulham, and PSV would be beyond awesome though.
Chicago, Barcelona, AC Milan, Liverpool Like Liam said, I think it will be Morelia and some other small teams that would play for small money.
Have this tournament be one where Chicago invites major clubs from their global sister cities, such as Munich (1860 or Bayern), Warsaw (choose from any, the Poles in Chicago will show up), and Osaka, Japan (Gamba or Cerezo), etc. I think Milan might be a sister city to Chicago as well. I know they have all the cities listed in that underground parking part of O'Hare underneath the Hilton. Yes, Morelia is a true sister club, not city, and it would be fitting for them to play in a tournament we put together, but maybe the other 2, or possibly 6?, slots could be used for teams from sister cities of Chicago.
Yes, they are. Here is a list of our sister cities for future reference. Accra, Ghana Athens, Greece Birmingham, England Casablanca, Morocco Durban, South Africa Galway, Ireland Gothenberg, Sweden Hamburg, Germany Kyiv, Ukraine Lucerne, Switzerland Mexico City, Mexico Milan, Italy Moscow, Russia Osaka, Japan Paris, France Petach Tikva, Israel Prague, Czech Republic Shanghai, China Shenyang, China Toronto, Canada Vilnius, Lithuania Warsaw, Poland Speaking of which, I really like the idea of a Chicago Cup. We can invite teams from our sister cities and host the cup yearly or once every other year. It's a good idea Marchetti.
here are some (semi) realistic teams from those cities. Accra Hearts of Oak -Accra, Ghana AEK Athens -Athens, Greece Birmingham City -Birmingham, England Raja Casablanca -Casablanca, Morocco Manning Rangers -Durban, South Africa Galway United FC -Galway, Ireland IFK Göteborg -Gothenberg, Sweden Hamburger SV -Hamburg, Germany Dynamo Kiev -Kyiv, Ukraine FC luzern -Lucerne, Switzerland UNAM Pumas -Mexico City, Mexico I think there are just two, and they probably won't come -Milan, Italy Lokomotiv Moskva -Moscow, Russia Cerezo Osaka -Osaka, Japan Paris Saint-Germain -Paris, France Maccabi Petach-Tikva FC -Petach Tikva, Israel Sparta Prague -Prague, Czech Republic Shenhua FC -Shanghai, China Shenyang Ginde -Shenyang, China Toronto Lynx -Toronto, Canada FK Žalgiris Vilnius -Vilnius, Lithuania Polonia Warsawa -Warsaw, Poland
This is an awesome list and I think the teams that play at the Fire level are Sparta Prague, UNAM Pumas, AEK Athens, and maybe IFK Goeteborg and Hamburger SV. Dynamo Kiev would certainly be a team from a top shelf and it would be awesome to have it here although it is probably beyond reach. I am not sure how Lokomotiv now stands but there has to be more teams from Moscow and not only Lokomotiv and Spartak. The glory days of Polonia Warszawa are over although I would place it on the lower shelf together with many other teams on this list that are certainly worth looking at. Teams from China, Morocco, and Ghana would almost certainly be denied visas so we may simply forget about them. Marcin P.S. Well, of course I am talking about pre-2004 Fire.
Yeah, I would put PSG in that group as well. I was thinking of perhaps when we hold the four team tournament, we can have one real "headliner" as the special guest. PSG and Dynamo could be this team in different years. One problem might be offending the other teams though. There are at least two more in the top division, but those two are the first that came to my mind. Sad but probably true. Though, with all the good relations between China and the NBA, I wouldn't rule it out. David Stern even mentioned playing some actual league games in China next year. I'm just saying, it's at least a possibility that we could get Shenhua FC. It could get big support from the chinese community in Chicago, and I'd rather have them than any other Chinese teams. As for the Fire, the 2005 Fire will be the best yet
Well, Dallas played Dynamo Kiev last spring....but it was in Spain. We've played Hamburg before. And kicked their ass, but their players took the game about as seriously as I would take a letter from a Nigerian tribal lord asking me to transfer money into his checking account. And the fans that travelled to see them (a LOT) were seriously pissed off. I think realistically you could have an annual tournament where Chicago and Morelia are the permanent invitees/hosts and you get a sister city team that won't demand much money and a bigtime headlining team like a PSG or a Dynamo or hey, even a Milan and hold a tournament. Maybe get a title sponsor, too? The LaSalle Bank Trophy? Or something like the Metropolis Cup or Chicago Invitational would be nice too.
This would be an absolutely awesome idea. I know ManU did something similar to this right before the season started. PSV was one of the teams that played in the four-team tourney. One of the other four teams was from Japan, but I can't remember where the last one was from. MAKE THIS HAPPEN!
Other Moscow clubs in the first division: CSKA (currently leading Russian league) Torpedo FK Moskva (formerly Torpedo-Metallurg) Dinamo Also, there's Saturn Moskovskaya Oblast, which isn't from the city of Moscow itself, but is just outside it. Dynamo Kiev might be out of reach, but there are two other Kiev teams in the first division: Obolon and Arsenal. Both finished mid-table last season, Obolon 6th (of 16) and Arsenal 9th. Polonia Warszawa would be an excellent team to invite, IMHO, given the Fire's high level of support among the Polish community. Realistically, the four-team tournament I'd like to see in Chicago is the Fire, Morelia, Polonia Warszawa, and either Birmingham City, Hamburger SV, or Cerezo Osaka. IMHO that would be fairly competitive.
Legia is from Warsaw, too right? We've actually played (and beat) them before, in Chicago. Jerzy Podbrozny diving header!
I would venture there are more fans of Wisla Krakow here in Chicago than any of the teams from Warsaw or other major cities. There simply has been more immigration from that part of Poland.
I see everyone likes my "sister cities" club tournament idea... so is there any way this could come a reality? Can we talk to Peter? Do you think it will happen?
I'd like to see Bohemians Praha!! This is a very cool idea. Are we shooting for a tournament this spring as part of the pre-season? That would be great after having the Champs' Cup matches last spring. What kind of format is generally used for 4-team friendly tournaments like this?
This is my more advanced plan from what I said earlier: Spring 2006: After the Bridegview Stadium has been constructed, and it has passed health inspections and building safety, then play a 4-team tournament there before the MLS 2006 season begins. Whether or not Monarcas Morelia particapte in this tourney is a different question, but others have made lists of all sister cities of Chicago, and from that list, and all the soccer teams that play in those cities, 3 quality teams could be pulled from that list to participate. And, I am almost certain that at least 3 teams from a list of 25 would agree to this tourney, regardless of what time during the season it is. This would show that MLS teams no longer have to wait to get invited to international tournaments, but rather we will be the ones hosting and inviting them. This would be a spectacular way to begin a new season, and it will surely increase revenue for the Fire, especially if we have teams play that will bring a crowd (ie: Legia Warsaw, Hamburg SV, Cerezo Osaka, or UNAM Pumas). With the stadium situation taken care of, the Fire can organize this as they please, and they will have 100% control over the management of the tourney, such as stadium usage, revenue, etc. Hopefully, hosting a tourney such as this isn't all that much expensive, and PERHAPS the Fire could host a preseason tourney every year with their sister cities/clubs? Then, when MLS reaches praise worldwide, and is considered a TOP league, then maybe we can start bringing in the big guns for some tourney. Even if the Fire organization starts small (with teams like the Toronto Lynx, Hearts of Oak, and Maccabi), this should be done, and it will increase the domestic interest of the MLS, particularly in the Fire, and it will, hopefully, increase the interest of foreign fans, similar to the way we soccer fans in the US like following the English Premier League. In all honesty, I see no reason not to put together this tournament. I understand that scheduling and money is a BIG part of how this may be put together, but plan in advance, and find a sponsor. The LaSalle Bank Cup? The Honda Cup? This can work.
Well the answer you and most people want to hear is it's round robin with a playoff. In reality it's usually the teams drawn against each other in one game each and the winners and losers of the games play off. So basically just 2 days of doubleheader matches (friday and a sunday, for example).
It would be a great way to open the stadium. It would bring some good press, pack the stadium, and ensure that the stadium is filled with a great atmosphere (which would also add to the press). Also, when it comes to major clubs, all that really matters is money. If the Fire were willing to pay their fee (which they won't, nor would I ask them to), they could easily bring Barcelona, Real Madrid, and pretty much any other team they wanted. Real Madrid was going to play the Galaxy for christ's sake. It's just a matter of what teams would bring in people, money, and press, without costing too much $$$. If it were for the stadium opening, I'd love it if they brought in teams like Dynamo Kiev and PSG, though under the standard method of competition Liam described we would most likely only play one of them. We alos have to take into account that the stadium might be finished just in time for the season, or maybe even a couple weeks after it starts. You can't play an opening tourny in a stadium that's not finished.