the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup -- which was renamed after the legendary sportsman in 1999.
"It is a testimony to his impact on the game that the U.S. Open Cup is named after him, and that is just one of many ways his legacy will live on," said Sarachan.
Fire veteran midfielder Diego Gutierrez, who for six seasons played for Hunt's Kansas City Wizards, won Open Cups both in Kansas City (2004) and in Chicago (1998, 2000, 2006). For Gutierrez, it was the individual attention Hunt gave to his teams and their players that highlighted his stay in Kansas City.
"I was blessed to know him on a personal level," said Gutierrez. "Every time I saw him he always had a smile and a kind word. I'm very sad with this passing because he treated me and my family very well. We still have a wedding gift from Lamar in our dining room and we'll always hold on to it.
"We're talking about a person who really has made an impact on so many people's lives. So many people have been touched by this man. You really have a lack of words for all the accomplishments that he's achieved."
For Gutierrez, his time between both the Kansas City and Chicago clubs was greatly influenced by Hunt's desire to keep the Kansas City area native at home.
"At the end of the 2000 MLS Cup Final, when Kansas City beat [the Fire] and I was playing with Chicago, I was a little bit distraught on the sideline. Lamar ceased to celebrate for a minute and came over to me and said, 'Diego, I've got to get you back home,' meaning that he wanted me to go back and play for his team. As the story goes, I was traded back to Kansas City.
"The next time I saw him after that in Kansas City, he welcomed me with open arms and he said, 'I told you so.' This was a man that believed in me a great deal, and I was proud to captain some of his teams. I am proud just to have known him."
Fire President and CEO John Guppy also remembers Hunt as a man whose humble personality and human touch preceded his vast notoriety and wealth.
"Lamar was one of the most genuinely impressive men I have had the good fortune to know," said Guppy. "Every time we spoke you appreciated that he was sincerely interested in your personal well being. I remember being with Lamar at an event in Chicago earlier this year shortly after my father had passed away. He had heard of my father's passing and went out of his way to extend his condolences and share with me memories of his own father.
"He told me that not a day goes by that he doesn't think of his dad. It was a very touching moment. I am sure that not a day will go by now without Clark, Dan, Lamar, Jr., and Sharron thinking of their very special father."
As influential in the boardroom as he was outside of it, Hunt's tireless contributions to sports in the United States are nearly incalculable. However, the man known for influencing the NFL to finally adopt the two-point conversion will forever be remembered for forever revolutionizing the American soccer landscape.
Growing up a Crew fan as a kid in Ohio, I distinctly remember both the Franklin County and suburban Dublin city ballots failing to secure a stadium site for the Columbus franchise in the late 1990's.
Thanks to Hunt, I also remember fans of 'America's Hardest Working Team' breathing a collective sigh of relief when it was announced the team would be playing on the grounds of the Ohio Expo Center, with roughly $29 million of the one-of-a-kind stadium funded primarily by Hunt Sports Group. Fans of the 'beautiful game' and of MLS rejoiced, for modern professional soccer finally had its first home.
Current Crew general manager Mark McCullers, who in 1999 was Crew Stadium GM, said at that time, "People don't realize how much of Lamar's input made this stadium what it is. He just has a wealth of experience to draw from."
Hunt's experience in pro sports investment later tempered the belief that American soccer could succeed if transitioned into soccer-centric venues. His legacy as a builder of American soccer paved the way for future soccer stadia such as the one we enjoy here in Bridgeview.
And while the man's patronage for soccer throughout the years may never crack major headlines, nor be remembered perhaps as much as his involvement in the NFL, it can't be denied that his involvement has forever changed the sport in this country, possibly more than any other individual before him. Sarachan summed it up perfectly.
"Without Lamar's commitment to soccer in the United States I don't know where we would be today, frankly."
Neither do I. Thank you, Lamar, for all that you have done.
Chris Bailey is the Fire's Media Relations Coordinator (but still remains a Crew fan). Comments on this story can be sent to Chris at cbailey@chicago-fire.com.
