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FOXBORO - Will the jinx end for the New England Revolution?

Steve Nicol and his lads hope so as they embark upon their quest for the MLS championship, hosting the Chicago Fire in the first of a two-match, total goal Eastern Conference semifinal round series.

In a change to the previously-released MLS Cup Playoffs schedule, the Revolution will now host the arch-rival Fire in Game 1 at 2 p.m. on Sunday. The match has been moved from its originally-scheduled date of Saturday at 4 p.m.

Consider this, the Revolution is 0-5-3 in eight meetings with the Fire in all competitions dating back to the start of the 2008 season, including 0-3-2 in the regular season, 0-1-1 in the MLS Cup Playoffs and 0-1-0 in SuperLiga. New England last beat Chicago in the 2007 Eastern Conference championship game, 1-0, on Nov. 8, 2007 at Gillette Stadium.

New England is winless (0-3-2) in its last five home games against the Fire in all competitions, including 0-2-1 in the regular season. After the match at Gillette Stadium, Game 2 will be played at the Fire's Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Ill., on Nov. 7.

The Revolution and Fire will meet in the MLS Cup Playoffs for the fifth straight season and for the seventh time in eight years. The Revs ended the Fire's season for three straight years - 2005, 2006 and 2007 - on their way to MLS Cup championship game appearances, while Chicago won the teams' series last year in 2008.

Should the teams be tied on total goals after Game 2 in Chicago, the teams will play a 30-minute mini-game immediately following the match to determine a winner. Should the teams still remain tied after the mini-game, penalty kicks will be used to determine who advances to the Eastern Conference Championship.

The Revs have advanced to the MLS Cup Playoffs for the 10th time in team history and for the eighth straight season overall.

Chicago owns a slight edge in the all-time, all-competitions series between the two teams, 24-19-9, the Fire having the advantage in regular-season (15-13-8) play. The clubs have split 13 postseason matches (6-6-1).

The Revs are 15-9-3 against the Fire at home in all competitions, which includes a 9-7-2 mark in regular-season games, a 6-0-1 record in the MLS Cup Playoffs. New England is 12-7-2 against Chicago in all competitions at Gillette Stadium since the facility opened in 2002.

This will be the second straight year in which the Revs and Fire meet in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Last year, the teams played to a 0-0 draw in the first leg at Gillette Stadium before the Fire claimed a 3-0 win at Toyota Park.

Each team is undefeated against the other on its home field in the playoffs - New England is 6-0-1 and Chicago is 6-0-0.