After a weekend of seven World Cup games that marked the first time Brazil, Germany and Argentina all failed to win their opening matches, the tournament continued on Monday with another tripleheader. Sweden scored a penalty against South Korea to earn a 1-0 win, Belgium overpowered Panama 3-0 and England's Harry Kane came up with a late goal to down Tunisia, 2-1.
Thus far, the drama of the 2018 FIFA World Cup has been widely viewed by the Fire players, who continue to post on social media their support for their national teams.
Before Mexico's upset 1-0 win against Germany on Sunday -- viewed by an enthusiastic crowd at Heineken Pub97 -- Fire goalkeeper and former Mexico youth international Richard Sánchez cheered for his team on Instagram.
Following Mexico's unexpected victory, Bastian Schweinsteiger tweeted some encouragement for his German side. But not before Fire captain Dax McCarty took a good-natured jab at his teammate.
Last week, on his media trip to New York City, Schweinsteiger shared with Bleacher Reporthis bracket for the 2018 World Cup. While his pick for champions may not have been unexpected, some other selections were noteworthy.
Over the weekend, Fire midfielder Diego Campos also shared his support for Costa Rica in their match against Serbia. Costa Rica, who shocked the world when they reached the 2014 World Cup quarter-finals, are in the same group as Serbia, Brazil and Switzerland this year.
Fellow Fire midfielder Mo Adams also couldn't suppress his excitement for England's long-awaited opening match against Tunisia, and was thrilled by their victory.
Day 6 of the World Cup, Tuesday, June 19, would mark the last of all opening matches when Group H takes the stage:
- 7 AM CT: Colombia vs. Japan (Group H)
- 10 AM CT: Poland vs. Senegal (Group H)
- 1 PM CT: Russia vs. Egypt (Group A)
Check out how the MLS players in the World Cup are doing and find out what Watch Party opportunities there are across Chicago. Also, follow both our Chicago Fire World Cup Central for more news and features in the month ahead and our Fire social media hub for more player and team updates.
