BRIDGEVIEW, Ill. - Chicago Fire Soccer President/CEO John Guppy today announced that the Fire has re-signed veteran captain and midfielder Chris Armas to a contract with the club. Per team policy, terms of the contract were not announced.
An original member of the Fire since the squad's Inaugural Season of 1998, the 34-year-old Armas will return for his tenth season in Chicago next year. The 2007 campaign will mark Armas's fifth as the captain of the club, a role he took over upon the retirement of "Ring of Fire" member and current U.S. Men's National Team assistant coach Peter Nowak prior to the 2003 season.
"I'm proud that this will be my tenth year with the club. In sports today it's not the norm for one guy to be loyal to a club and the club being loyal to the player," said Armas. "Chicago is an exciting place to be right now, with the stadium in place and a good returning team of young players and veterans; it's a good mix. I'm very excited to be back with the Fire organization, as it means a lot for many reasons."
Since beginning his 11-year MLS career as a member of the Los Angeles Galaxy in 1996, Armas has racked up 12 goals and 46 assists in 239 regular season contests, all but three of which have included the Long Island native in the starting line-up. Armas' 239 games and 236 starts rank 13th and 11th, respectively, in MLS history. Additionally, Armas' 40 assists as a member of the "Men in Red" ranks second only to Nowak (48) in Fire history, while his 188 starts (3rd), 16,824 minutes played (3rd) and 189 games played (4th) also place amongst the top five in Chicago annals. The Adelphi University product has been named to the MLS Best XI team on five occasions (1998-2001, 2003), was awarded the 2003 ACE Comeback Player of the Year award and is one of only two players - along with defender C.J. Brown - to have suited up for the Fire for at least one match in each of the team's previous nine seasons.
"I couldn't imagine the Chicago Fire going into the 2007 season without our captain, Chris Armas," said Fire Head Coach Dave Sarachan. "He embodies everything that is important in a player as far as his leadership and his command for respect. As the heart and soul of this franchise, Chris has been and will continue to be the captain of the Chicago Fire. He is the ultimate leader and will lead us to what we feel will be a very successful 2007 season."
In addition to his many accolades in MLS, Armas has also garnered acclaim on the international level as a member of the U.S. Men's National Team, having earned 66 appearances (2 goals) for the "Red, White & Blue" since 1998, including three appearances in which he donned the captain's armband. Armas helped the United States qualify for both the 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups and won the 2000 U.S. Soccer Male Athlete of the Year award.
The Chicago Fire will begin its tenth season of play in Major League Soccer at Bridgeview's TOYOTA PARK on Saturday, April 7, 2007, when the squad will welcome 2006 MLS Cup finalist New England Revolution for a 7:30 p.m. CT kick-off (television information TBD). Currently, the only way for fans to secure their seats for the Fire's 2007 season at TOYOTA PARK, including the season opener against the Revolution, is by purchasing a 2007 Season Ticket Package, available now by calling 1-888-MLS-FIRE or visiting the club's official website, www.Chicago-Fire.com.
