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Thanks to everyone for the kind words on Twitter about our Beasley story we posted over the weekend. That story was special to me, because that USMNT - Poland match and the Chicago Fire -New England Revolution game that followed were my first two pro soccer matches I attended in person. My pal Chris Combs convinced me to go, and I’ve been hooked ever since.
Getting to interview Beasley about that moment was a pretty cool experience, and he was really excited to talk about it, too. I think it’s one of those feats that kind of got lost and forgotten about, so I really felt like I needed to write something to help bring it back and help people remember. It really was an amazing display of endurance.
During our interview, Beasley mentioned a few cool Fire stories that didn’t make the cut of the initial story, so I thought I’d share those with you.
RUN DMB still reps the 312
After retiring last fall, Beasley is still living in Houston. But, after stops in the Netherlands, England, Scotland, Germany and Mexico, he’s still connected to Chicago in one big way.
“I still have a Chicago number! I still have this 312 number. I’ve had the same number since I moved to Chicago,” Beasley said.
Beasley was part of a carpool club with the Fire
“My second year, CJ [Brown], myself, Chris Armas, we all lived in kind of the same area, so we would car pool to practice,” Beasley said. “One day it would be CJ, one day it would be Chris, one day it would be me, and we’d all pick each other up. That’s why I was always so close, and I still am to this day, with CJ and Armas, because we rode together.”
His Chicago memories are some of the best of his career
Newer soccer fans, especially of the USMNT, think of Beasley as being the old man who kept coming back for more. But when he was with the Fire, Beasley was a kid fresh out of high school. He was technically a member of the LA Galaxy first, but Chicago was where he really began as a pro. Beasley said the Fire staff and players during his 2000-2004 run in Chicago really looked after him. But, Beasley said, the winning is what he’ll remember most.
“We didn’t complete all of our goals in winning the [MLS] championship, but we did get the Open Cup, and you always remember winning,” Beasley said. “Being able to go to four finals in my four years that I was there, and win two of them, was special.”