Andrew Hauptman, who bought Chicago Fire from AEG in September 2007, saw his club make it to the Eastern Conference Championship in 2008, where they lost to the host Columbus Crew. "I don't like to do things halfway," Hauptman said. "There is nothing fun about being mediocre. That game in Columbus was devastating. We need to win, end of story, full stop."

As for Brian McBride joining his team in 2008 Hauptman said: "He brings so much to the club; he sets the standard. A lot of the credit goes to Brian. He wanted to be in Chicago."