Rumor Mill: Chicago Fire re branding and moving back to Solider Field

They need to do something that’s for sure

This is great news. The commute is the main reason I don't go to more matches. I'll be going to Fire-Rapids on 4/20 to see Tim Howard

This is outstanding news for anyone who’s a fan of American soccer, whether you care about MLS or not. For far too long, the Fire have been an afterthought, and we’ve had no professional soccer presence in one of our nation’s biggest cities. Hell, it’s the city in which the USSF is headquartered. A well-run team in Chicago would be great for American soccer.

I expected this to happen eventually, but not this quickly. The Fire’s new 49% owner (who will very soon probably be the majority owner) Joe Mansueto is a Chicago business billionaire, and he seems to have big plans for the team. Don Garber has made fixing the situation a top priority, now that the business in Columbus is settled.

For many MLS teams, this would be a backwards move to return to an NFL stadium, but it’s the perfect move for Chicago. They have to get out of that awful Bridgeview lease, and playing in Soldier Field makes the team way more accessible until a soccer-specific stadium can be built. Soldier Field has worked great for soccer in the past. If they do this right, it can take MLS in Chicago to new heights. A well-run team playing in Soldier Field that signs big names and markets well to the city’s Hispanic community could easily draw Seattle-level crowds.

A rebrand and stadium change worked great for Kansas City. They transformed from the worst-supported MLS team to one of its proudest success stories. As much as I like the Chicago Fire name and brand, it’s a huge problem when people Google your team and the first page of results is for a TV show of the same name. A new name might be needed for the team to be taken seriously. Distance the team from the stink of MLS 1.0.

Hope FC Dallas can get out of Frisco someday and move closer to the middle of the Dallas-FTW Metroplex, so they can reach their full potential. Mark Cuban is keeping an eye on the league. He might swoop in and buy the team at some point. There’s so much potential in Dallas.

I'd love for the Fire to move back into the City, I'd probably actually go to some matches...

Although, I'd hope a SSS is not part of that Lincoln Yards monstrosity of a development..

quote:

---

Yep, and that area is growing faster than they can build so it won't be long until they'll have plenty of support to pull from locally. Houston built a beautiful complex downtown and they still can't draw a crowd, so location isn't always everything.

---

It seems that they had a decent draw when the stadium was new. From an outsider point of view it seems the team isn't ran very well.

My understanding is Houston does absolutely zero marketing.

quote:

---

It seems that they had a decent draw when the stadium was new. From an outsider point of view it seems the team isn't ran very well

---

Talking about Houston or Dallas?

I think Dallas is being run pretty well, but I'll agree with you about Houston.

it was pretty empty during the playoff game last season

Yeah, I think Houston will actually be the easiest of the struggling teams to turn around. It’ll just take new ownership that actually invests in the team. The stadium location is fantastic. They’ve drawn over 20K in the past, even when the team wasn’t that good.

Just look at Houston’s roster. The only player a causal soccer fan would know is Damarcus Beasley. The team is good this year, but they have the cheapest payroll in the league. No big names for anyone to get excited about. That’s not gonna bring in casual fans in a competitive market like Houston.

The team does basically zero marketing and has been very poorly run since the team was sold to its current ownership back around 2012. They have a new club president this year, and he’s trying to turn things around, so we’ll see how it goes.

And I disagree with the thought that being in a Liga MX heavy market is holding the Texas teams back. That hasn’t hurt the two MLS teams in Los Angeles at all. Almost 100% of their fans are Mexican-Americans that still support their Mexican teams alongside MLS. The Texas teams need to market better to Hispanics instead of just the suburban crowd and put more players on the field causal fans will care about. Signing someone like Chicharito would do wonders for either team.

We’ve seen things turn around quickly in DC, and I’m confident the same could happen in Houston with the right ownership. Making FC Dallas relevant in Dallas will be much harder and require moving out of Frisco.

I just hope it’s not Chicago FC/City/United

Give it a rest guys.