CHICAGO (February 20, 2015) -- The Chicago Fire Soccer Club is set for the second leg of its preseason training schedule, which has brought the Men In Red to Portland to participate in the 2015 Simple Invitational hosted by the Portland Timbers.
The Fire are slated for a trio of preseason scrimmages to advance their preparation for the March 6 season-opener at LA Galaxy. On Sunday (Feb. 22), Frank Yallop's squad will line up opposite Norwegian Tippeligaen club Stabaek -- managed by Chicago Fire inaugural head coach Bob Bradley -- before facing MLS sides Portland Timbers (Wednesday, Feb. 25) and Vancouver Whitecaps (Saturday, Feb. 28).
In conjunction with recently announced broadcast partner Comcast SportsNet Chicago, the Club has announced that all three Fire appearances at the Simple Invitational will be simulcast for free on both Chicago-Fire.com and CSNChicago.com. The Club's veteran broadcast tandem of Dan Kelly and Kevin Egan, who will return to the Fire broadcast booth for CSN Chicago in 2015, will be on site in Portland to call Sunday's match against Stabaek.
The Chicago Fire's trio of scrimmages in Portland come on the heels of two successful outings to open preseason preparation during the team's two-week trip to England. The Fire posted clean sheets in both fixtures, recording a scoreless draw with Norwich City FC before topping Premier League side Queens Park Rangers, 1-0, on the strength of a first-half Quincy Amarikwa strike.
Visit the links below to access live streaming video for each of the Fire's three matches at the Simple Invitational and to catch up on news and notes from throughout the 2015 preseason. Video links will become live shortly before kickoff of each match.
| 2015 Preseason News & Coverage | |
|---|---|
| Feb. 5 |
Fire Battle Norwich City FC to Scoreless Draw |
| Feb. 5 |
Open Tryouts Provide Opportunity with First Team |
| Feb. 8 | U.K. Check-In with Native Brit Matt Watson |
| Feb. 9 | Jeff Larentowicz: In His Own Words |
| Feb. 10 | Watson Relishing Role with Revitalized Fire |
| Feb. 11 | Catching Up with GK Sean Johnson |
| Feb. 12 | Bircham, James at Home on Preseason Stops |
| Feb. 12 | Fire Defeat QPR to Close U.K. Travels |
| Feb. 17 | Tuesday Training Takeaways |
| Feb. 18 | Rookies Impress Early in Preseason |
| Feb. 18 | Prepping for PDX |
| Feb. 20 | All Together Now |
| Simple Invitational Schedule | |
|---|---|
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Match 1: Chicago Fire vs. Stabaek (Sun., Feb. 22, 4:30 p.m. CT) |
Live Video |
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Match 2: Chicago Fire vs. Portland Timbers (Weds., Feb. 25, 9:30 p.m. CT) |
Live Video |
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Match 3: Chicago Fire vs. Vancouver Whitecaps FC (Sat., Feb. 28, 4:30 p.m. CT) |
Live Video |