RADIO: WRTO-1200 AM (Oscar Guzman, "Batata" DaSilva, Enrique "Tico" Fernandez)

The Chicago Fire will play their second international friendly of the season as they take on Celtic FC at TOYOTA PARK this Sunday afternoon (3:00 p.m. CT, Fox Soccer Channel). The Fire are coming off a 0-1 loss to the USL First Division Carolina RailHawks Sunday in Cary, N.C. in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Defending Scottish Premier League champions Celtic are set to play the MLS All-Stars in the 2007 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game this Thursday night (8:00 p.m. CT, ESPN2) before arriving for this Sunday's Fire-Celtic clash. Action from the international friendly will be broadcast live from 71st and Harlem nationally on Fox Soccer Channel and over the airwaves on Chicagoland radio station WRTO-AM 1200 (Spanish).

** Sites/times subject to change. Please call 708.496.6726 to confirm training schedule. All times Central.

Sunday, July 22 Chicago Fire vs. Celtic FC TOYOTA PARK 3:00 p.m. Fox Soccer Channel

This Sunday afternoon the Chicago Fire face one of the most storied clubs in Scotland, Celtic FC, at TOYOTA PARK, with kick-off set for 3:00 p.m. CT. Celtic FC clinched the 2007 Scottish Premier League (SPL) title, the club's 41^st domestic title. "The Hoops" have won back-to-back championships; capturing five of the last seven league crowns. Celtic went unbeaten in an astonishing 31 of 34 games this past season, notching a 25-3-6 overall record in the SPL.

"Obviously Celtic is a great team and a very well recognized club throughout Europe and throughout the world," said Fire head coach Juan Carlos Osorio. "It can not be a better opposition for some of the guys here that haven't had experience at that level, hopefully for the younger players like Chris Rolfe, Chad [Barrett] and the rest. If we can have Cuauhtémoc for the game then I think we will have all the guys ready and hopefully have the team in place that will be basically be the starting lineup for the rest of the season."

The Chicago Fire was eliminated from the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Sunday night with a 1-0 loss to the Carolina RailHawks in third round action in Cary, N.C. As a result, the Fire fell short of defending the Dewar Trophy, which it won for the fourth time in 2006. Carolina, an expansion team in the United Soccer Leagues (USL) First Division, broke through in the 56th minute when McColum Cephas accepted a one-touch pass from Anthony Maher in the box and placed a low shot inside the near post. Chicago was outshot, 13-10, in a physical contest that produced 36 fouls and six yellow cards. The Fire's best scoring chance of the night came in the 48th minute when forward Chad Barrett closed in on the Carolina goal from the right side, only to see his shot land in the chest of goalkeeper John O'Hara.

Blanco Set to Debut Sunday

Chicago Fire Soccer has announced that forward Cuauhtémoc Blanco, the Fire's Designated Player signing, will soon return from his run in Copa America with the Mexican National Team to make his much-anticipated Chicago Fire debut on Sunday, July 22, when the squad takes on Scottish Premier League side Celtic FC at TOYOTA PARK. The 34-year-old attacker has been with the Mexican National Team after closing out his career with Mexican First Division side, Club América. Overall, the native of Mexico City, Mexico tallied seven goals and six assists through 1,530 minutes of action for the "Aguilas" through the 2007 Clausura regular season.

Tickets Still Available for Sunday's Friendly

Single game tickets for the Fire Celtic FC match can be purchased through the TOYOTA PARK box office, other Ticketmaster outlets, or by phone at 312-559-1212 and online at www.ticketmaster.com. Top tickets for the Celtic FC game are still available at Premier Mid ($60), Premier ($55), CornerKick ($45), and Firehouse ($35). A special two-game package is also available, which includes the Celtic friendly and the Fire's August 25 game against the Kansas City Wizards at TOYOTA PARK. For more ticket information, call 1-888-MLS-FIRE or visit www.chicago-fire.com.

Fire Launch Chicago Fire Soccer Academy

Chicago Fire Soccer recently announced the formation of the Chicago Fire Soccer Academy, an elite player development initiative designed to identify and develop the best young talent within the Chicagoland area. The program will be fully funded by the Chicago Fire, with no financial responsibility falling on Academy players. The Academy will be limited to 44 players and will field two Academy teams, under-16 and under-18 men, that have been accepted to participate primarily in the U.S. Soccer Development Academy.

Through various recruiting and identification initiatives, 44 players aged 14 through 18 years of age will be invited to join the Academy based on ability, potential, and desire to play at the professional level. The Academy will be managed and funded directly by the Chicago Fire and will seek to develop relationships with all youth soccer clubs, high schools, and programs within the Chicagoland area to identify the top local talent. With the launch of the Chicago Fire Academy, the Fire now has player development programs and partnerships at every level, including the Fire Juniors, Super-20s, and the Fire Premier PDL Team.

"The launch of the Chicago Fire Soccer Academy is one of the most significant developments in the history of the Fire," said Fire President/CEO John Guppy. "I cannot stress enough how important this initiative is to the future of soccer in Chicago, and I'm thrilled that we are now in a position to provide the best young talent with a professional player development environment that is focused solely on the ultimate goal of developing professional caliber players."

Fire Hire Louis S. Mateus to Lead Academy

Overseeing player selection and all technical instruction and development for the Chicago Fire Soccer Academy will be former Rockford Raptors Director of Coaching and club co-founder, Louis S. Mateus (pronounced mah-TOOS). Mateus has over 20 years coaching experience, with collegiate head coaching posts at National Louis University (1985-1989), Benedictine University (1989-1996), and most recently Rockford College (1997-2001). He has also been involved in the game at the national and state youth levels, having previously served as an assistant coach for U.S. U-17 National Team (1995-1997) and is currently an assistant with the U.S. U-14 National Team. A former professional player for the Milwaukee Wave, Chicago Shoccers, and the Chicago Power, Mateus has been involved with the game at all levels.

"In Louis Mateus we have found the perfect individual to lead the Academy program," said Fire President/CEO John Guppy. "Louis is well connected and universally respected within the Chicago soccer scene. He is tri-lingual and has a proven record for developing talent."

"I am thrilled that the Fire has given me this unique opportunity to spearhead the Academy program," said Mateus. "I hope that through the quality instruction we will be providing in the Academy, some of the most talented local youth players will be able to realize their true potential and become professional players with the Chicago Fire."

Fire U-17s Go 1-1-1 in Inaugural SUM U-17 Cup

The Chicago Fire U-17 team recently competed in the inaugural SUM U-17 Cup, held July 13-19 at the Dick's Sporting Goods Park facility in Commerce City, Colo., in advance of the 2007 Sierra Mist MLS All-Star Game. The Fire tied the Houston Dynamo in an opening day 3-3 draw on July 13, then routed the Colorado Rapids' B team 3-0 on Saturday, July 14. On Monday, July 16, the Fire U-17s fell 0-3 to the Los Angeles Galaxy, who scored three goals in the final 10 minutes to beat Chicago in what became a knockout match, as the teams were tied atop the group on four points at the start of the day.

Fire Premier Make PDL-Record Seventh Straight Playoffs

The Chicago Fire Premier of the Premier Development League (PDL) locked up a playoff berth with a 1-0 win over the visiting Cleveland Internationals on Saturday, July 14, in Lemont, Ill. for a new PDL record for postseason appearances. Fire Premier President John Dorn learned at half-time of the match with Cleveland that his CFP squad needed only one point in the two remaining matches of their regular season to make the 2007 post-season playoffs for a new PDL record seventh straight years. The Fire Premier were in good shape at the half-time intermission, as they had a 1-0 lead over Cleveland thanks to a 33rd minute goal by midfielder Neil Hlavaty (Boston University). The Fire Premier held onto their 1-0 lead through the final 45 minutes of the match despite being outshot by Cleveland 19-8, but some outstanding goalkeeping by Patrick Sperry (University of Michigan) preserved the win. For the Fire Premier it moved their 2007 regular season record to 8-3-4 (28 points) and moved the PDL club's career regular season record to 97-15-9 in its seven years of operations as both the Chicago Fire Reserves and Chicago Fire Premier.

Fire Forward Breakdown:

Barrett, Chad 4G/1A 1,281 minutes 16 games/15 starts (Scored game-tying goal in 1-1 draw vs. TOR on July 7)
Carr, Calen 1G/0A 732 minutes 14 games/7 starts (Last scored in 2-1 loss vs. DAL on May 17)
Monteiro, Jerson 1G/0A 154 minutes 5 games/1 starts (First MLS start against COL on July 1)
Rolfe, Chris - 4G/3A - 495 minutes 6 games/6 starts (Has missed last 10 MLS games due to ankle injury)

Bob Bradley Inducted into "Ring of Fire" on Aug. 4

Chicago Fire Soccer has announced that former Fire head coach Bob Bradley will be inducted into the prestigious "Ring of Fire" Hall of Fame on Aug. 4, at TOYOTA PARK in a pre-game ceremony before the "Men in Red" take on Eastern Conference foe Columbus Crew (6:00 p.m. CT, HDNet). Bradley, who is currently serving as the U.S. Men's National Team head coach, and fellow inductees Peter Wilt, Peter Nowak, and Frank Klopas will be in attendance for a 90-minute pre-game reception on the TOYOTA PARK rooftop to celebrate the induction. Tickets for the reception are available through The FireWorks for Kids Foundation (FWFK).

Join the Fire's Fight Against Malaria

Join Chicago Fire midfielder Diego Gutierrez in the battle against malaria. Major League Soccer joined the effort against malaria through its community outreach initiative MLS W.O.R.K.S. collaborating with the Nothing But Nets and Malaria No More campaigns. For more information on malaria awareness and how to donate, log on to www.NothingButNets.net or www.malariaNOMORE.org.

Quick Kicks vs. Celtic FC

· With a yellow card picked up in Thursday's 0-4 loss to Houston, Fire defender/midfielder Diego Gutierrez is now on "Caution Watch" with four yellow card cauitons accumulated through for the 2007 season. Should he receive a caution in the Fire's next regular season game at Toronto FC on July 29, he will serve a one-game suspension for the Aug. 4 game versus the Columbus Crew at TOYOTA PARK.

· Fire defender C.J. Brown served his one-game suspension Thursday against Houston and will be available to play for head coach Osorio for the next regular season game on July 29 at Toronto.

· Chicago defender Gonzalo Segares is the only Fire player to have played in every minute of every 2007 regular season game for the "Men in Red".

· With a scoreless result Thursday versus Houston, the Fire were prevented a tally in the first half for a franchise-worst sixth consecutive regular season game.

· The "Men in Red" are 25-5-2 all-time in U.S. Open Cup competition.

· Fire goalkeeper Jon Busch earned his second start of the season last Sunday against Carolina, his first since the Chicago's July 4 contest at Los Angeles.

· Sunday's third round exit from the Open Cup was the Fire's first "one and done" since the 2002 season, when the "Men in Red" were eliminated after falling to the Milwaukee Rampage 0-1 on July 12 in Franklin, Wisconsin. Chicago lost one other time in the third round, to the Rochester Rhinos 0-1 on July 14, 1999 at Fronteir Field in Rochester, N.Y.

· Caution Watch Chad Barrett (2c), C.J. Brown (5c), Calen Carr (3c), Jeff Curtin (2c, 1e), Jim Curtin (2c), Diego Gutierrez (4c, 1e), Logan Pause (1c), Dasan Robinson (2c), Gonzalo Segares (4c), Bakary Soumare (1c, 1e), Thiago (3c).