Schwarz: Taking an opportunity to praise Joe Mansueto and the Chicago Fire
When you’ve spent more than a decade criticizing an organization for failure after failure, mistake after mistake, snatching draws from the jaws of victory, or losses out of draws — you get the idea — well, it’s only fair to say something positive when that organization does something right.
The Chicago Fire has done something very significant and very right. And it’s very nice to finally be able to write that.
This former Fire beat writer has taken plenty of opportunities to criticize the Fire, and to be honest there’s still a lot to criticize. The club still has only two playoff appearances since 2009, and in MLS that’s really hard to do. So many teams get into the MLS playoffs each season, you have to be doing something really wrong to miss out so often.
A goat with his nose out of joint can’t explain this run of ineptitude.
And it’s not just that the Fire has missed the playoffs. The club has scored only 1 playoff goal since 2009 and lost both playoff games it played.
But this column was promised to you as one ready and eager to praise the Fire. Sorry, old habits. Back to the good news.
The Chicago City Council on Thursday voted to approve the Fire’s plans to build a $750 million soccer-specific stadium downtown in the new neighborhood known as The 78. Construction on the 22,000-seat arena along the Chicago River a few blocks south of the Eisenhower Expressway will begin in early 2026. The stadium is scheduled to open in time for the 2028 MLS season.
That might not even be the best part. The stadium will be 100% privately funded by Fire owner Joe Mansueto. In fact that might be how the Fire got to this point so quickly. No waiting around on governmental units to give in to various demands to ease the team’s financial burden in one way or another at the expense of taxpayers.
“This will be the first major stadium built in Chicago in three decades, and it’s being delivered entirely through the private investment of our owner, Joe Mansueto,” Fire president of business operations Dave Baldwin said in a statement. “His vision and commitment will give our club a world-class home while creating a year-round sports and entertainment destination for the entire city. Beyond Chicago Fire matches, the stadium will attract global concerts and events, creating thousands of jobs, fueling economic growth, and driving new energy into the South Loop.”
This is what many of us around the team thought would happen when Mansueto became sole owner of the franchise in 2019. It just took longer than we expected.
Heck, the Fire even has a chance to — gasp! — make the playoffs this season. The team is in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, and with four games to play it rents the conference’s last playoff spot. Hey, you have to start shoveling somewhere.
“This is more than just a stadium — it’s a catalyst for the growth of both our club and Chicago,” Baldwin added. “We look forward to taking the next steps in this exciting journey and continuing to invest in the future of our great city.
“We’re just getting started.”
Wouldn’t that be fun to write about.
Daily Herald Sports Editor Orrin Schwarz can be reached at oschwarz@dailyherald.com.