Gapers Block published from April 22, to Jan. The site will remain up in archive form. The time for Chicago Fire fans to rejoice is once again nigh, as the Major League Soccer season is but days away from drawing to a close. It is doubtless then that supporters of The Men In Red— like pagans gathering at Stonehenge in anticipation of the winter solstice —are feeling the frisson of excitement which signals the coming of their annual celebration of change and growth for the team: the annual roster shake-up and its attendant transfer frenzy.
Take heed, as these words do not come from a place of snark. The offseason player movements have become in many ways the most thrilling event of the year. There are many reasons for why this has become such an interesting and exciting time for the team and its fans, but it mostly boils down to the mystery of it all. Which players will find themselves suddenly on the outs? Who can Chicago manage to snag in the offseason? Might it actually be Mexican star Carlos Vela? Continue reading this entry ».
The build-up to the Women's World Cup has been almost as much about judging the entertainment value of women's sports as it has been the quality of Team USA to win the cup. Last night US Soccer held a last minute outdoor viewing party for the semifinal match against Germany and Chicago showed up.
The diversity was amazing. As I sat on a picnic blanket with my husband and our soccer-obsessed pre-teen, I took note of many other families on their own blankets. But there were also the countless college-age students who made it clear they wanted to stand in the front row and cheer on our team. The group of people in front of us looked like they swapped meeting up at their neighborhood bar for the lawn in foggy Lincoln Park. And it should be noted that the beer garden was heartily packed.
It's a Monday night and I'm sitting in the Chicago Diner with Matt Watson, the English midfielder with the Chicago Fire a month or so into his second year playing for the club. We're at Chicago Diner—perhaps the city's premier meat-free eatery—because Watson is a vegan and has been meaning to try it out since arriving from Vancouver last March. But at present it seems a bit of a fool's errand, as our conversation has gotten off to a running start and Watson has hardly had a moment to pause and bite into his Buddha's Karma Burger, a curried sweet potato sandwich that captured his attention straightaway.
