The Chicago Fire announced on Friday that the club will be hosting a four-team international tournament in May at Toyota Park including clubs from three of Chicago’s sister cities: Legia Warsaw (Poland), Paris Saint-Germain (France) and Red Star Belgrade (Serbia).
The tournament is called the “Chicago Sister Cities International Cup” (CSCI Cup) and will feature doubleheaders on Wed., May 19, and Sat., May 22. The Fire face PSG and Legia battle Red Star on the first night. The consolation match is followed by the CSCI Cup final on May 22.
Chicago has ties to Legia Warsaw. Two former Legia players, Roman Kosecki and Jerzy Podbrozny, starred for the Fire in their MLS Cup 1998 championship run. The Polish club’s last appearance in Chicago came in June of 1999 as they fell to the Fire 3-2. Legia is in fourth place in the Polish First Division, eight points behind the league leaders.
This will mark the first ever trip to the U.S. for PSG, who are currently in the middle of the French Ligue 1 standings. Red Star Belgrade, the 1991 European Cup champions, are in first place in the Serbian Super League.
To accommodate the events, the Fire moved their May 22 MLS regular-season match against the Colorado Rapids to Wednesday, June 9 at 9 p.m. ET.
Following the CSCI Cup, the Fire will host three consecutive MLS regular-season matches at Toyota Park in a span of 14 days. Chicago will welcome FC Dallas, Philadelphia and Colorado just before MLS' two-week break for the World Cup.
Tickets for the CSCI Cup go on sale April 10.
