Fire's Brown decides it's right time to retire

C.J. Brown didn't just decide to retire Thursday, he also ended an era of Chicago Fire soccer.

Brown was the last of the Fire Originals, the only active Fire player from the 1998 expansion team that won the MLS Cup and U.S. Open Cup. The veteran central defender shared captain duties this season with Brian McBride, who also will retire after Saturday's regular-season finale at Chivas USA.

“We have three words in our locker room up on the wall and that's tradition, honor, passion, and I want it known that I lived by those words,” Brown said. “I'm hoping when people see me on the field that they say I'm playing with everything.”

Brown was known around the club for his work ethic, his dedication to the club, his willingness to mentor younger teammates and his physical play. He felt time and injuries having an effect, however.

“I'm not as fast I used to be, I'm not as physical as I used to be. The years have taken a toll,” he said.

Though some teammates tried to talk him out of retiring this year, Brown decided the time was right, though it was a tough decision.

“As an athlete you never really want to walk away from this because this is one of the best jobs you can ever have,” he said.

Brown, 35, played 370 matches for the Fire, totaling more than 25,000 minutes. He has started 25 MLS games this season tied with Logan Pause for most on the club and leads the team in minutes played with 2,250.

“I didn't go on the soccer field to win friends,” Brown said. “I went on the soccer field to win games for the Chicago Fire.”

Brown, who has coached Fire Juniors youth teams, said he hopes to catch on as a coach in MLS, preferably with the Fire. He went out of his way to thank the fans in Chicago for their support.

“Chicago's been great to me,” he said. “… I just want to thank everybody for embracing me.”