The LA Galaxy enter the two-week World Cup break undefeated after beating the visiting Houston Dynamo 4-1. Forward Jovan Kirovski led the scoring charge with a first-half brace while forward Tristan Bowen and midfielder Alex Cazumba supplied the second half strikes. It took just 47 seconds for the Galaxy to get on the board.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Chicago Fire target forward and Arlington Heights, Ill., native Brian McBride and midfielder Patrick Nyarko have some added interest in the 2010 FIFA World Cup when the U.S. takes on Ghana this Saturday.
McBride was on the 2006 U.S. squad that fell to Ghana, 2-1, and was eliminated from the Cup.

There's a Major League Soccer draft next week, right?

That's what my calendar says. Yep, right there. It's listed in my datebook, Jan. 14. It's written down right next to my monthly meeting of the local Bacon of the Month club. Bacon – Ummm.

But I guess we need somebody to put on their snowshoes and or ride Paul Revere-like through the wintry mess and get an important message to a couple of teams up in the cold, cold northeast.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The start of the 2010 Women's Professional Soccer season did not go exactly as planned for Chicago Red Stars midfielder Megan Rapinoe.
A key fixture on the 2009 squad, Rapinoe was sidelined for the first three games of this season as she recovered from mononucleosis.
"With the mono, you can't have contact, which is quite frustrating," Rapinoe said.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Italian club A.C. Milan and Major League Soccer's Chicago Fire square off in an international friendly at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at Toyota Park.
It caps a jam-packed May for the Fire as they enter their seventh and final match of the month.
The Fire and Milan last played one another in 2005 at Soldier Field, with Milan topping Chicago, 3-1.

There's a Major League Soccer draft next week, right?

That's what my calendar says. Yep, right there. It's listed in my datebook, Jan. 14. It's written down right next to my monthly meeting of the local Bacon of the Month club. Bacon – Ummm.

But I guess we need somebody to put on their snowshoes and or ride Paul Revere-like through the wintry mess and get an important message to a couple of teams up in the cold, cold northeast.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- With six games under his belt -- 20 percent of the MLS regular season -- this seemed to be an appropriate time to get inside the mind of the Chicago Fire's Andrew Dykstra and his first season as the team's No. 1 goalkeeper.
The preseason fiasco of the late switch with Dykstra taking over Jon Busch's previous role has died down, and the 24-year-old has had ample opportunity to get into a comfortable place as Chicago's last line of defense.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Chicago Fire defender Tim Ward was a model of progression during the team's 2009 MLS season. Most matches he showcased continual improvement in his game. Then, his season hit a brick wall when he broke his toe during the 2009 SuperLiga final against Tigres UANL.
Ward missed the latter third of the MLS regular season and Chicago's usual run to the Eastern Conference Finals.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire dug themselves into a bit of a hole, but a Brian McBride goal allowed the Fire to salvage a 1-1 draw against FC Dallas on Thursday night in MLS action in front of a crowd of 12,552 at Toyota Park.
If the Fire's busy May schedule has taken its toll, Thursday showed some indications that there were some heavy legs on the Chicago side.

Uncle Sam's Army

As MLS prepares to go on holiday for several weeks, most MLS players will be glued to their televisions from June 11 July 11 just like you and I. All the attention for the American squad will go to a few high profile players while the rest of our nations soccer playing multitudes will take a seat on the sideline.

The Chicago Fire finally found the three points they had been looking for since April 24 with a 2-1 win over the expansion Philadelphia Union at Toyota Park on the first Saturday night in June.

Fire great Peter Nowak returned to Chicago with his Union team on Polish Night in Bridgeview to try to keep the Fire winless since their victory over Houston in April.

Sam Krenzien (Wauwatosa West) came through when his FC Milwaukee team needed it most.

The UW-Green Bay recruit scored all four goals, the last two in the final 15 minutes, as FC Milwaukee's Under-17/18 team pulled out a 4-3 victory over the Chicago Fire Sunday at the Toyota Park practice field in Bridgeview, Ill.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Chicago Fire forward Collins John has been absent from the pitch for a good portion over the past month, and everyone from Fire fans, to the organization and John himself wanted to know exactly what has kept him out of action.
After several doctors ran some tests, the Fire are going to label John's setback as gastrointestinal illness.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire took a small step back in ESPNsoccernet.com's MLS Power Rankings, dropping from eighth to ninth place this week following their 1-1 home draw against Chivas USA on Saturday at Toyota Park.
Visit ESPNChicago.com for the full post and complete league rankings for Week 7.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Red Stars travel out west to Castro Valley, Calif., to take on four-time FIFA Women's World Player of the Year Marta and the league-leading FC Gold Pride for a 9 p.m. CT match on Saturday in Women's Professional Soccer action.
This marks the teams' first head-to-head matchup of the 2010 WPS season.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Chicago Fire head coach Carlos de los Cobos had to move a few pieces around to find the appropriate starting group and formation early on this season. For Toronto FC head coach Preki, it was quite a different story for his most recent roster shuffling.
Last week against defending champion Real Salt Lake, Preki benched one of the league's top goal scorers in Dwayne De Rosario and designated player Julian de Guzman in a more defensive setup.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Red Stars start a three-game homestand this Saturday when they welcome the expansion Philadelphia Independence for a 6 p.m. match at Toyota Park. This is the first meeting between the two Women's Professional Soccer clubs.
Both teams are coming off losses in last week's competition when the Red Stars fell to FC Gold Pride, 2-0, and Philadelphia was dealt its first loss of the season, a 2-1 decision against Saint Louis Athletica.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- For whatever reason the Chicago Fire typically have faired well against the Kansas City Wizards. That bodes well for them as they hope to quickly erase the memory of last week's 4-1 loss to Toronto FC.
The Fire have a 20-9-7 all-time record against the Wizards as they make the trek to Kansas City for a Saturday match at CommunityAmerica Ballpark.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Red Stars fell to the expansion Philadelphia Independence, 1-0, on Saturday in Women's Professional Soccer action in front of 5,645 fans at Toyota Park.
The Independence improved to 3-1-2 and the Red Stars dropped to 1-4-1 on the season.
"I think everyone is somewhat frustrated, but I think this is the time where it tests our character a lot," Red Stars defender Marian Dalmy said.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire's Sister Cities International Cup opens Wednesday night, with the MLS side hosting Paris Saint-Germain at 7 p.m. at Toyota Park. Legia Warsaw and Red Star Belgrade play each other afterward, and Wednesday's winners will meet in a championship match on Saturday.
"We're very fortunate to play these games, and hopefully it brings out the best in us," Fire midfielder Patrick Nyarko said.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Michele Weissenhofer is the definition of homegrown -- a local product from Naperville, Ill., a collegiate athlete a short trek away at Notre Dame, and now a professional soccer player for the Chicago Red Stars of Women's Professional Soccer.
And she is loving every minute of her professional experience.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Red Stars of Women's Professional Soccer and United Soccer Leagues W-League affiliate Chicago Red Eleven are gearing up for an exhibition match at 6:30 p.m. Friday at the Schwaben Athletic Club, 301 Weiland Ave., in Buffalo Grove, Ill.
General admission is $10, and ages 6 and under receive free admission.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire simply did not look like they were ready for their own tournament.
Without a shot on goal in the first 45 minutes and Paris Saint-Germain capitalizing on of its first-half chances, the French side held on the rest of the way for a 1-0 victory Wednesday in the first-ever Sister Cities International Cup at Toyota Park.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- We are into the tail end of May, with plenty of Major League Soccer action left in the tank. But with a 2-3-3 record and a middle-of-the-pack spot in the Eastern Conference, the Chicago Fire are looking to change the tone of its season.
The Fire hope they can find the win column when they host FC Dallas at 7 p.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire are in the midst of a busy non-MLS month. And without a league match this past week, Chicago still dropped a point to 12th in ESPNSoccernet.com's weekly MLS Power Rankings.
The Fire (2-3-3) resume league play this Thursday when they host FC Dallas (7 p.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire's 2010 first-round draft pick, midfielder Corben Bone, finally was able to put in some worthwhile game-time minutes during Saturday's consolation match against Legia Warsaw in the Sister Cities International Cup.
Bone got the start and played until the 57th minute during the Fire's 3-0 loss to Legia.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- This was not the way the Chicago Fire wanted to draw up their first-ever Sister Cities International Cup. And now they have gone approximately a month without earning a victory.
Legia Warsaw netted three second-half goals and blanked the Fire, 3-0, on Saturday in the consolation match of the Sister Cities at Toyota Park.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The 2009 SuperLiga runner-up Chicago Fire will return to the fourth edition of the tournament in July. Major League Soccer and Federacion Mexicana de Futbol announced the 2010 SuperLiga schedule on Thursday.
SuperLiga features the top four MLS teams from the previous year's regular-season record who are not competing in the 2010-11 CONCACAF Champions League.

The Chicago Fire traded first half goals with FC Dallas for a 1-1 stalemate at Toyota Park Thursday evening. David Ferreira struck first for the Texan side before Brian McBride equalized shortly before halftime. The Brimstone Cup feature showed little of the passion of its earlier years, with both teams appearing complacent throughout.

The Chicago Fire traded first half goals with FC Dallas for a 1-1 stalemate at Toyota Park Thursday evening. David Ferreira struck first for the Texan side before Brian McBride equalized shortly before halftime. The Brimstone Cup feature showed little of the passion of its earlier years, with both teams appearing complacent throughout.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Following a bye week from Women's Professional Soccer play, the Chicago Red Stars take on four-time FIFA Women's World Player of the Year Marta and FC Gold Pride at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 29, at Toyota Park.
The match marks the second meeting between the two clubs in the month of May.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Kosovare Asllani netted her first goal and the Chicago Red Stars defeated first-place FC Gold Pride, 1-0, on Saturday in Women's Professional Soccer action in front of 3,845 at Toyota Park.
Next up for the Red Stars is a 5 p.m. match on Sunday, June 6, against the Atlanta Beat at Toyota Park.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Sunday's international friendly between the Chicago Fire and A.C. Milan had a few elements you wouldn't typically see at a Fire match at Toyota Park.
Away from the field of play, you had the crowd, a couple of fans disrupting the action, a flare whizzing by Milan goalkeeper Dida.

Photo by Tracy Allen/ISIphotos.com

By ANTHONY ZILIS

Practice was a little different this week for the Chicago Fire than it had been in previous weeks.

No longer do the Fire have a 42-day winless streak hanging over their heads after defeating Philadelphia on Saturday at Toyota Park, and a more chipper feeling was the result.

Photo by Tracy Allen/ISIphotos.com

By ANTHONY ZILIS

Practice was a little different this week for the Chicago Fire than it had been in previous weeks.

No longer do the Fire have a 42-day winless streak hanging over their heads after defeating Philadelphia on Saturday at Toyota Park, and a more chipper feeling was the result.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Fire's Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup third-round match on Tuesday was a mess in more ways than one.
The few passing moments in the offensive third, the petty extracurriculars between the Fire and United Soccer League Second Division opponent Charleston Battery, the two scoreless 15-minute overtimes, the questionable officiating decisions -- these elements dragged out an uneventful feeling within the match.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- What a difference a year makes for Chicago Red Stars goalkeeper Jillian Loyden.
Last season, the Vineland, N.J., native played second fiddle to U.S. Women's National Team starting goalkeeper and former Saint Louis Athletica starter Hope Solo. Loyden had a few opportunities in the net during the inaugural 2009 Women's Professional Soccer campaign, including a shutout against the Red Stars.

Saturday July 17, 2010 will not be remembered by Fire fans as the day the Fire lost to the New England Revolution 1-0 at home in a Group B SuperLiga match-up but as the day help arrived to possibly save the 2010 Fire season. With the team clearly in a tailspin the Fire front office, true to their word to be active in the designated player market after the World Cup, added a former Mexican National team forward Nery Castillo to their line-up.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- Despite five designated players taking to the pitch and the anticipation heading into the Chicago Fire's home match against the New York Red Bulls, both talented squads lacked the offensive gusto on Sunday.
In the end, it was Fire rookie goalkeeper Sean Johnson earning the spotlight with seven saves as the Fire and Red Bulls played to a scoreless draw in front of the largest crowd (21,868) in Toyota Park history.

BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. -- The Chicago Red Stars of Women's Professional Soccer announce today the move of defender and midfielder Lydia Vandenbergh to the organization's first-team roster. Per team policy, terms of her contract are not released.
Vandenbergh has spent the 2010 season as a developmental player for Chicago, playing in three matches (one start) and logging 109 minutes.