Bradley Soccer head coach Jim DeRose announced during a press conference Thursday afternoon that Major League Soccer’s Chicago Fire will begin the pursuit of its fifth Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup championship in Peoria June 10 at Shea Stadium.

In what is believed to be a local first, two major American professional sports teams will meet in a meaningful game in Central Illinois when the Chicago Fire faces one of its MLS rivals, either the Columbus Crew or Real Salt Lake, in a play-in game of the 2008 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. Sponsored locally by the Butcher Block at Junction City, the game will kick off at 7 p.m. June 10 at Bradley Soccer’s fifth-year stadium. Tickets will cost $25 for assigned seating in the main bleachers or $15 for general admission lawn seating beyond the endlines and will go on sale May 14 at the Shea Stadium Box Office or online through the Bradley Athletic Department’s official website, www.BradleyBraves.com.

“Bringing prime, professional sporting events to Peoria is an enhancement for our whole community,” said Alexis Khazzam of Junction City Ventures. “Peoria has a very strong soccer backing and the opportunity to see two pro teams play an elimination cup game might be the largest-scale sporting event to be played in our city’s history.

“Junction City is proud to participate in supporting Coach DeRose and his efforts to increase the image of soccer, the most-played game in the world, in our community,” Khazzam added. “June 10th will be a special day in Peoria’s long, athletic tradition.”

“We are excited about playing this game at Bradley University in Peoria,” said Frank Klopas, technical director of the Chicago Fire. “It will be a great opportunity for soccer fans in Central Illinois to see us play a game that has significant meaning as we begin to make a run at another U.S. Open Cup.”

The winner of the game will advance to the tournament’s round of 16.

With $100,000 on the line for the tournament champion, the MLS teams are expected to roster most of their top players for the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup games. The Chicago Fire features one of the Latin America’s most popular players, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, who also stars for the Mexican National Team and was a finalist for MLS Most Valuable Player in his first year with the Fire in 2007. In addition to Blanco, the Chicago Fire roster features six players who have combined for 30 U.S. Senior National Team appearances -- C.J. Brown (15), Jon Busch (1), Diego Gutierrez (1), Justin Mapp (8), Chris Rolfe (4) and John Thorrington (1) -- as well as international veterans Tomasz Frankowski (Poland) and Andy Herron (Costa Rica).

Although only in its 11th year of existence the Chicago Fire already owns five domestic championships, winning four Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cups (1998, 2000, 2003 and 2006), as well as the 1998 MLS Cup. Chicago also was the runner-up in the 2004 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, as well as the MLS Cup in 2000 and 2003.

Real Salt Lake defeated former Bradley star Gavin Glinton’s San Jose Earthquake, 4-0, April 30 in a U.S. Open Cup qualifying game. Columbus will host Real Salt Lake in the final qualifying round May 27 to determine Chicago’s opponent in the June 10 game at Shea Stadium. While Real Salt Lake is a fourth-year MLS expansion team, Columbus is an MLS charter organization. The Crew won the 2002 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup and was the runner-up in 1998. Columbus has opened the 2008 MLS season with a 5-1-0 record and the Crew currently lead the Eastern Conference with 15 points.

Recognized as the US Soccer Federation’s national championship, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup dates back to 1914, making it the oldest soccer cup competition in the country and one of the oldest in the world. The 95th annual tournament is open to all affiliated amateur and professional teams in the United States. Following play-in competition, the 40-team field for the 2008 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup will be comprised of eight teams from five divisions: MLS, United Soccer Leagues First Division, USL Second Division, Premier Development League and United States Adult Soccer Association.

Located at the site of the former Pete Vonachen Stadium at Meinen Field at 1523 W. Nebraska Avenue in Peoria, Shea Stadium has served as the home field for Bradley Soccer since the start of the 2003 season. The Braves have hosted two NCAA Tournament first-round games (2005 and 2007), as well as 12 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament games, at Shea Stadium.