Chicago Fire Poised For Playoffs

By Tim Bearden in News on Oct 13, 2012 2:30PM

It's not a widely talked about sport in Chicago, especially with the Bulls and Bears in action, but the Windy City's premiere soccer club, the Chicago Fire, is ready for the playoffs.

The Fire sealed a playoff bid after they beat the New York Red Bulls 2-0 last Saturday and Sporting Kansas City tied with the Columbus Crew 1-1 on Sunday. This is the first time since 2009 that Chicago's soccer club has entered the post-season. The squad has been playing since 1998.

Soccer may be an unsung and underrated sport in America, but with three MLS Cup appearances, four US Open Trophies, one MLS Championship, which clinched the historic "Domestic Double" of winning both the MLS Cup and US Open in 1998 (they are the first and only expansion team to do this) under their belt in only 15 years, the Fire may be the best major league sport in Chicago—at the very least the most successful in the last 15 years.

Currently they are three points behind Eastern Conference leader Sporting Kansas City and are holding on to a two point lead over D.C. United to remain in second place in the conference. Their final regular season game is on October 27 against D.C. United.