CHICAGO(Dec. 4, 2019) – The Chicago Fire FC sent a U-12 Pre-Academy and Fire Juniors Affiliate team to compete in the Generation Adidas Cup over Thanksgiving weekend.
Hosted by MLS in conjunction with Adidas, the GA Cup is an MLS-only event for academies and affiliates. The Fire Juniors Elite U-12 Boys’ team was coached by Kentucky Fire Juniors club coach Brock Hickam and was composed of players from six of the 11 Fire Juniors Affiliates. The team kicked off participation in the tournament with a 2-1 win against the Boise Timbers and 2-2 draw (4-3 win in penalty kicks) against Met Oval on the first game day.
The second day was an excellent learning experience for Fire Juniors Elite U-12, which started off with 2-0 losses to LAFC Academy and D.C. Untied Academy before bouncing back 1-0 against the Colorado Rapids Alliance. The team closed out the tournament with a 1-1 draw (penalty kick win) against the Michigan Wolves.
In the MLS Academy division, the Chicago Fire U-12 Pre-Academy squad finished the weekend with wins against Sporting Kansas City, Columbus Crew SC and Toronto FC.
The three-day tournament started with the Fire U-12 Pre-Academy falling to Inter Miami and New York City FC. Day Two started off with a 4-1 win against Sporting Kansas City, followed by a 2-1 win against the Columbus Crew. The third game of the day saw the team draw 1-1 with Toronto FC before securing three points via penalty kicks.
Tournament games wrapped up on Sunday, Dec. 1, with a narrow 4-3 defeat against the Colorado Rapids.
