February 27, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – Chicago Fire FC News Release
CHICAGO – Chicago Fire FC will play its first home match of the 2022 MLS campaign when the team hosts Orlando City SC at Soldier Field on Saturday, March 5. Scheduled to begin at 5:00 p.m. CT, tickets for the first home game of the Club’s 25th season are currently available for purchase here.
Saturday’s match will air on WGN-TV, CF97 Live and will be transmitted in Spanish on TUDN Radio 1200 AM. Leading into the match, a new 30-minute episode of “No Little Plans” will air on WGN for the first time this season. “No Little Plans,” produced by Second Star Creative, Fire’s in-house agency, will provide a behind-the-scenes look at the team, chronicling the new faces and storylines in 2022.
The Fire (0-0-1, 1 point) officially began the Ezra Hendrickson era in South Florida on Saturday, as the team opened the season on the road against Inter Miami CF. Despite having several chances to score, the Fire settled for a 0-0 draw at DRV PNK Stadium, tallying its first clean sheet and point of the season.
Designated Player Xherdan Shaqiri made his Club and MLS debut in the match, playing the full 90 minutes. Team captain Rafael Czichos and strikers Jhon Durán and Kacper Przybyłko also notched their first appearance for the Club. Additionally homegrown goalkeeper Gaga Slonina recorded his fifth clean sheet in his 12th professional appearance.
Saturday’s match will mark the 15th all-time regular season meeting between the Fire and Orlando City. Chicago enters the contest with a slight advantage at home against Orlando, with a 3-2-2 record in seven meetings. In 2021, each Club won their respective home match, with Chicago winning 3-1 at Soldier Field on July 7 before falling 1-0 at Exploria Stadium on Aug. 21.
Orlando City (1-0-0, 3 points) enters the match coming off a 2-0 home victory over CF Montréal earlier this afternoon. The Lions received goals from forwards Alexandre Pato and Benji Michel, tallying their first three points of the season.
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